The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) has granted oil and gas development company Orcadian Energy a one-year extension for license P2244, which contains the Pilot oilfield.
The Second Term of the license was due to expire at the end of this November and has now been extended to the end of November 2023.
Orcadian Energy submitted a draft field development plan (FDP) for the Pilot field to NSTA in June, under which the project will be developed with an FPSO vessel and a pair of wellhead platforms with power provided by a floating wind turbine.
The company will next year be working towards a potential development decision on the field, which has audited proven and probable reserves of 79 MMbbls.
The field development plan is said to build upon work done in the concept select process which culminated in NSTA sending a “letter of no objection” to the low-emissions concept selected by Orcadian, as announced on 1 December last year.
“We see extending the licence as a real vote of confidence from the NSTA in the North Sea. We look forward to progressing the Pilot project during 2023, and we believe that when production commences at Pilot it will contribute greatly to the UK’s energy security,” said Steve Brown , Orcadian’s CEO,
“We believe the UK North Sea is blazing a trail for the global oil and gas industry. It is time to ‘Back British Energy’ and we are confident that the Pilot development has the potential to be a flagship project demonstrating how to reduce global emissions and making a contribution to the transition to net zero. “
The Pilot oilfield is located in North Sea license P2244 Block 21/27a where Orcadian is the operator with a 100 per cent interest. It is the largest oilfield in the company’s portfolio.
Orcadian states that the development of the Pilot field is an essential aspect of a “secure transition” to net zero for the UK and, due to the development concept that has been adopted, the project is expected to be amongst the lowest carbon emitting oil production facilities in the world.
The selected development concept is anticipated to produce 2.6 kgCO 2e /bbl of carbon-equivalent emissions, which is approximately a tenth of the emissions intensity of North Sea production in 2021.