Statoil and its partners have completed their latest appraisal well in the Johan Sverdrup discovery. The well was drilled by the Ocean Vanguard and encountered a 30-meter gross oil column in Upper-Middle Jurassic reservoir rocks.
Statoil has completed another appraisal well in PL265 in the Johan Sverdrup discovery with partners Petoro, Det Norske Oljeselskap and Lundin Petroleum. The well was drilled with Diamond Offshore’s Ocean Vanguard semisubmersible, which will now drill wildcat well 25/11-26 in production license 169, where Statoil is also the operator.
“We are satisfied with the results of our appraisal program in PL265 part of Johan Sverdrup in 2012,” said Gro Haatvedt, senior vice president – Exploration Norway for Statoil. “We have proven new volumes to Johan Sverdrup in the Geitungen segment and drilled two important appraisal wells in the central and southern parts of the license. In 2013 we will continue appraising the discovery and plan to drill from one to three new wells in PL265.”
Appraisal well 16/2-15 was drilled in a southwestern segment about 5 km southwest of the 16/2-6 discovery well and 2.3 km south of appraisal well 16/2-11. The well encountered a 30-meter gross oil column in Upper-Middle Jurassic reservoir rocks, of which about 20 meters were of very good reservoir quality. The oil/water contact was encountered at the same depth as in the neighboring wells.
Well 16/2-15 was drilled to a vertical depth of 1,984 meters below the sea surface and was terminated in the Triassic. The well will be permanently plugged and abandoned. Water depth at the site is 111 meters.
The objective of well 16/2-15 was to examine reservoir thickness and properties in Upper to Middle Jurassic reservoir rocks, as well as to determine the height of the oil column in this part of the discovery. Extensive data acquisition and sampling were carried out. Two formation tests were conducted in the uppermost part of the Jurassic reservoir, where the reservoir quality was not as good. As expected, this showed somewhat reduced flow properties. Pressure data indicates that this reservoir zone is in communication with the best part of the reservoir. This is the 10th exploration well in production license 265, which was awarded in the North Sea round in 2000.
