The Norwegian Offshore Directorate has granted Wintershall Dea Norge AS drilling permit for well 35/11-27 S in production licence 248, cf. Section 13 of the Resource Management Regulations.

Wintershall in Norway

Wintershall Dea is now one of the leading gas and oil companies on the Norwegian Continental Shelf, having operated there for almost 50 years. The company has about 100 licences on the shelf, including 24 as operator, for example the producing fields Nova and Vega. The portfolio is being expanded further with smart technical solutions. For instance, the company is attracting attention with projects such as Dvalin and Nova. These fields are being developed by means of a subsea tieback, with production facilities on the seabed connected to existing platforms.

The company’s exploration and production concessions are located in all regions on the Norwegian Continental Shelf: in the North Sea, Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea. Nova and Vega are located around 125 kilometres west of the city of Bergen. Maria lies further north, roughly at the level of Trondheim, and Dvalin lies even further north.

Dvalin

The Dvalin field was not considered worthwhile in the 1980s. It was not until the new millennium that a consortium led by Wintershall Dea (then DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG) successfully explored for natural gas. In 2010 and 2012, exploration wells struck two gas-bearing horizons with thicknesses of 150 and 140 metres respectively. To enable production from the field, four production wells are connected to the existing Heidrun platform, via a subsea template installed on the seabed.

Nova

The oil and gas reservoir was called Skarfjell when it was discovered in 2012 and was later given the name Nova. Besides Maria and Dvalin, Nova is another field in Norway that Wintershall Dea discovered and developed as operator. Nova came on stream in the summer of 2022. With Nova, the company is strengthening its position as an expert in subsea developments: The reservoir is connected to the nearby Gjøa platform via a subsea tieback. That saves resources and money, extends the economic lifetime of the Gjøa infrastructure, and unlocks future tie-in opportunities. As Gjøa is powered via hydropower from the Norwegian mainland, Nova is a low carbon-intensity field and contributes to Wintershall Dea’s emission reduction performance.

Njord

Production at the Njord field in the Norwegian Sea began in 1997 and was interrupted in 2016 for modernisation work on the floating platform being used. In 2022 the field started producing again, creating a renewed oil and gas hub and delivering substantial additional volumes. In total, the upgrade, which is part of the Njord Future project, will add ten new production wells. Wintershall Dea holds a 50 percent share in the field, with Equinor being the operator.

KeyFacts Energy: Wintershall Norway country profile   l   KeyFacts Energy Industry Directory: Norwegian Offshore Directorate