Green light to uniquely profitable project

December 7, 2018 10:15 CET | Last modified December 7, 2018 11:17 CET
The Troll A platform
The Troll A platform in the North Sea. (Photo: Ole Jørgen Bratland)

The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy has approved the plan for development and operation (PDO) of the Troll Phase 3 development.  Capital expenditures of NOK 7.8 billion will help extend the productive life of the Troll field beyond 2050.

A unique oil and gas field globally Troll generates highly important to value for the Norwegian society. Since it came on stream in 1995 the field has generated an estimated NOK 1400 billion, i.e. NOK 175 million per day.

“With a break-even of less than USD 10 per barrel, Troll Phase 3 is one of the most profitable and resilient projects ever in our company.  Thanks to the PDO approval Equinor and its partners can now deliver another 2.2 billion barrels of oil equivalent from the field with a CO2 intensity of 0.1 kilo per barrel,” says Torger Rød, Equinor’s senior vice president for project management.

“Equinor will work closely with partners and suppliers planning start-up of the field in the first half of 2021,” says Rød.

Kjell-Børge Freiberg (left) and Torger Rød
Kjell-Børge Freiberg (left), minister of Petroleum and Energy, has approved the plan for development and operation of the Troll Phase 3 development. Torger Rød, Equinor, was happy to get this Christmas gift. (Photo: Eskil Eriksen)

“This adds a new chapter to the amazing Troll story. The field has an important part in our plans to transform the Norwegian continental shelf for sustainable value creation for several decades,” says Gunnar Nakken, Equinor’s senior vice president for Operations West.

“Troll is the biggest gas producer on the NCS, meeting 7-8% of Europe’s total daily gas consumption. We will deliver safe, profitable and carbon-efficient energy from Troll that helps reduce coal consumption and reduce CO2 emissions in Europe with a long-term perspective beyond 2050,” says Nakken.

The development of Troll phase 3 is also important for Norwegian supply industry. About 70 % of the value creation will take place in Norway.

The partnership has awarded contracts within marine installations and subsea facilities totalling an estimated NOK 950 million to the companies Nexans, Deep Ocean, IKM, Allseas and Marubeni.  In addition, the partnership has awarded contracts worth approximately NOK 2 billion for subsea facilities and the construction of a new processing module on the Troll A platform to Aker Solutions.

Troll partners: Equinor (30.58% - operator), Petoro (56%), Norske Shell (8.10%), Total E&P Norge (3.69%), ConocoPhillips Skandinavia (1.62%)

* You will find downloadable portrait photos via the links in the text above

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Facts about Troll

  • The Troll field consists of two reservoirs, Troll West and Troll East. The gas in Troll East is produced on the Troll A platform and piped to the Kollnes terminal. The thin Troll West oil zone is produced from the Troll B and Troll C platforms to the Mongstad oil terminal.
  • Troll is Norway’s biggest gas producer, with enormous reserves still left in the ground. After 20 years on stream 65% of the gas has still not been recovered.
  • Troll has also been Norway’s biggest oil producer for the past five years.
  • The annual energy production from the Troll field is equivalent to about three times the annual Norwegian water power production.
  • Due to the enormous resources, development and production must be planned in three phases:
    – Phase 1 is the gas in Troll East, which resulted in Troll A, the Kollsnes gas processing plant and the associated infrastructure.
    – Phase 2 is the oil in Troll West, which resulted in the Troll B and C platforms and associated infrastructure.
    – In phase 3 the gas cap over the Troll West oil column will be produced at the same time as the oil production continues.
  • A general development plan for the gas in the Troll field has been developed, which implies that new wells and new infrastructure will probably be installed on the field also in the future. This is included in the PDO for Troll phase 3.

Facts about Troll Phase 3

  • In 2017 the Troll partnership chose a subsea solution tied back to the Troll A platform as a concept for Troll Phase 3. The subsea concept includes the construction and installation of two subsea templates, drilling of 8 production wells, laying of a 36-inch pipeline and installation of a new processing module on the Troll A platform.
  • The development is powered from shore.
  • The Troll Phase 3 project extends the plateau production for gas from the Troll field by about 7 years, and the expected productive life by about 17 years.