The authorities have granted consent to operator Equinor and the other licensees for a 10-year lifetime extension for the Troll B facility in the North Sea. 

Troll B has produced more than one billion barrels of oil. Planning is now under way for another ten years of value creation. (Photo: Equinor/Øyvind Hagen)

The extended lifetime for Troll B also includes the oil and gas pipelines that were included in the approved Plan for Development and Operation (PDO). The current consent expires in September this year. The Troll B start-up date was in September 1995.

Extension of Troll B’s lifetime to 2030 is one of the potential solutions for further developing gas production from the Troll Vest gas cap, Troll phase three.

Nine seismic surveys have been carried out on the Troll field, with the last one completed last summer.

All previous surveys have contributed to identify new well targets. The licensees expect the results from processing the data from the latest seismic survey will yield additional well targets. These can be drilled from the subsea templates tied to Troll B.

“Extended operation of Troll B secures a foundation for good resource management of significant oil and gas resources from the gigantic Troll field,” says Arvid Østhus, Assistant director Development and operations, North Sea in the NPD.

The Petroleum Safety Authority has also approved extended operation and believes that Troll B can be operated safely until the end of the licence period, based on an assessment of current technical integrity. This requires maintenance and modifications according to the lifetime extension plan.

KeyFacts Energy: Equinor Norway country profile