StatoilHydro stated that gas was proven in the exploration well. The Gamma prospect is located eight kilometers southeast of the Mikkel field on the Halten Bank. The exploration well is one of several similar prospects in the Norwegian Sea.
The semi-submersible drilling rig, Ocean Vanguard, drilled the Gamma prospect exploration well. The well will reportedly be plugged and abandoned, and the rig will continue to the Alve find in the Norwegian Sea to drill an exploration well.
The licensees of production license 312, in which drilling of the exploration well has been concluded, are StatoilHydro with an operator stake of 59%, ExxonMobil Production Norway with 24% and Eni Norge with a 17% stake.
Orjan Birkeland, manager for exploration activities in areas close to existing fields in north Norway, said: The results strengthen our belief in the further potential of the area near the Midgard and Mikkel fields, and more wells will be drilled in the next few years. The Gamma volumes may be important to the Asgard gas production, and possible development solutions will be considered.
