Construction of a new extraction plant at the Kårstø complex north of Stavanger has been recommended to the Statpipe partnership by operator Statoil.
Due to form an integrated part of the existing treatment facilities at the complex, this unit would receive and process gas from Statoil’s Mikkel field in the Norwegian Sea.
It is due to be ready for operation when Mikkel gas deliveries begin on 1 October 2003, and will increase capacity by 13.5 million cubic metres per day.
The new plant involves an investment of NOK 1 130 million in money of the day, within an uncertainty range of plus/minus 20 per cent.
Construction is due to start at Kårstø next March, and will employ some 250 people at peak. In addition comes a project team with roughly 30 members.
The extraction facility will be prefabricated as modules, with the choice of module suppliers scheduled for next February.
A plan for installation and operation (PIO) is due to be submitted to the Norwegian authorities this autumn.
Existing facilities at the Kårstø complex, which treats gas and condensate from a number of Norwegian fields, will be operated normally during the construction period.
The Mikkel licensees submitted a plan for development and operation (PDO) to the authorities on 5 July. Costed at NOK 2.4 billion, these proposals call for the field to produce gas and condensate from the autumn of 2003 until 2017.