Equinor Greenlights $380M+ Barents Sea Development

Equinor (NYSE: EQNR) has revealed that it and its partners - Petoro, Total, Neptune, and Wintershall Dea - have decided to develop Askeladd Vest, located in the southern Barents Sea, with an investment close to $384 million (NOK 3.2 billion).

Part of the multi-phased Snohvit development, Askeladd Vest will extend plateau production at the Hammerfest LNG plant by two years, according to Equinor. Plans call for a production start in the first half of 2024, the company noted.

The workscope of the development includes tying the subsea template on Askeladd Vest back to the Askeladd field through a pipeline and an umbilical. The distance from the onshore production plant at Melkoya to the subsea field is 121 miles, which Equinor said is the longest distance ever to a field development.

“It is important to Equinor and its partners to utilize the resources and existing infrastructure in the area in the best possible way,” Geir Tungesvik, Equinor’s senior vice president for project development, said in a company statement.

“The Askeladd Vest development is a profitable development and will provide 134 million barrels of oil equivalent. These volumes are valuable to the owners and society,” the Equinor representative added.

Kristin Westvik, Equinor’s senior vice president for operations north, said, “by increasing the resource base for Hammerfest LNG, Askeladd Vest will be an important contribution in supporting our ambition of long-term presence in the north”.

“This will allow us to further strengthen the ripple effects of our activities in this part of the country, which is important to Equinor and its partners in the time ahead,” Westvik added.

Equinor holds a 36.79 percent operated interest in Askeladd Vest, with Petoro AS holding a 30 percent stake, Total E&P Norge AS holding an 18.40 percent stake, Neptune Energy Norge AS holding a 12 percent stake, and Wintershall Dea Norge AS holding the remaining 2.81 percent interest.

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