Dry well in the Farsund basin

Hydro, as operator of production licence 317, is currently concluding drilling of a wildcat well in the Loshavn prospect in the Farsund basin in the North Sea. No hydrocarbons were encountered in the well.

“This well could have contributed to opening up a new petroleum province in the North Sea, which is why it is disappointing that it was dry,” says Hydro’s acting head of exploration on the Norwegian continental shelf, Ole Haugerud.

The well is the first wildcat well in production licence 317. The licence was awarded during the 18th licensing round in 2004.

The objective of the well was to examine the potential for oil in the Loshavn prospect, located in the Farsund basin in the North Sea, around 50 kilometres from Farsund. The wildcat well 11/5-1 was drilled by the semi-submersible drilling unit Polar Pioneer, at a water depth of 176 metres. 

The primary target for the well was sandstone from the Jurassic Age. The exploration well was drilled to a total depth of 1929 metres below the surface of the sea, culminating in rocks from the Lower Permian/Carboniferous Age. The well has provided useful information in a new area, and extensive data collection will now be carried out. The well will then be permanently plugged and abandoned.

“In operational terms, drilling of this well has gone extremely well, and Hydro would like to thank all our local partners in the south-west of Norway for excellent cooperation in connection with this drilling operation,” Haugerud comments.

• Licensees in production licence 317:
  Norsk Hydro Produksjon AS (operator) - 60 %
  Statoil ASA - 40 %