The well, drilled to prove petroleum in Upper Cretaceous reservoir rocks, found three gross gas columns, totalling about 190 metres, of which the reservoir makes up 90 m distributed between three different sandstone zones in the Springar formation, with mainly moderate to poor reservoir quality. No gas/water contact was encountered in the well.

Preliminary estimates place the size of the discovery between 7 and 19bn m³ of recoverable gas and between 1 and 3mn m³ of recoverable condensate. The licensees will evaluate the discovery together with other discoveries and prospects in the area with regard to a potential further development.

This is the first exploration well in production licence 894. Well 6604/5-1 was drilled to a vertical depth of 3,819 m below the sea surface, and was terminated in the Springar formation in the Upper Cretaceous. Water depth at the site is 1,219 m. The well will now be permanently plugged and abandoned. Wintershall (part of BASF) is operator with a 40% interest, while Statoil also has a 40% interest and Petoro 20% of PL 894.

Meanwhile Lundin has concluded appraisal drilling of its appraisal well 16/4-11 of the Luno oil and gas discovery made in 2013 in the Norwegian North Sea some 20km south of the Edvard Grieg field, said NPD. Prior to drilling of this latest well, the Luno discovery was estimated at between four to ten million m3 of recoverable oil and between 1bn m³ and 3bn m³ recoverable gas. Following the well, the gas estimate remains unchanged but the oil estimate has been increased to between 5mn and 13mn m³ of recoverable oil. Partners will now evaluate whether to develop it through existing infrastructure on the Edvard Grieg field.

Chrysaor farms into Norwegian oil

Separately, Chrysaor is taking 15% equity in a Norwegian oil discovery, Grevling, from Okea, the Seacrest Capital-backed oil and gas development company focused on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. There is the option to extend this to 35%, Okea said March 26. "For Okea to succeed against its business strategy to develop and produce fields, which are outside the focus of the large oil companies, we need partners with aligned priorities and Chrysaor is an ideal partner for Okea with its significant scale, infrastructure and expertise." Grevling is in the Norwegian North Sea.

The deal is the first that Chrysaor has acquired interests outside the UK: it was set up to buy certain assets from Anglo-Dutch major Shell in the North Sea - under Shell's now broadly concluded $30bn asset divestment programme.