Equinor Energy AS, operator of production licence 167, has completed the drilling of wildcat well 16/1-29 S in the central part of the North Sea. 

The well was drilled about 2 kilometres south of discovery well 16/1-6 S (Verdandi) and 200 kilometres west of Stavanger.

The objective of well 16/1-29 S was to prove commercial oil volumes in the prospect’s main segment, as well as to determine the reservoir’s age, quality, geometry and fluid properties.

Well 16/1-29 S encountered an oil column of about 95 metres in total, of which 17 metres constitute efficient reservoir in clastic rocks with moderate to good reservoir quality. The oil/water contact was encountered at 1947 metres below the sea surface. Results from fluid samples indicate good oil quality. Preliminary estimation of the size of the oil discovery is between about 2.5 and 5.5 million standard cubic metres (Sm3) of recoverable oil. The licences consider the main segment to be commercial. Other segments will be evaluated, and further delineation of the oil discovery is relevant.

An oil and gas column of about 30 metres in total was also encountered in the Grid formation in the Eocene. The effective reservoir consists of thin sandstone layers totalling 10 metres with very good reservoir quality, of which about 5 metres with gas and 5 metres with oil. The gas/oil and oil/water contacts indicated from pressure data are 1436 and 1472 metres below the sea surface, respectively.

In addition, gas discovery 16/1-6 S (Verdandi) was delineated with 16/1-29 S, which came in as expected with a gas column of about 15 metres in the Heimdal formation in the Paleocene, with very good reservoir properties. The gas/water contact was not encountered. The size of 16/1-6 S (Verdandi) is unchanged at between 0.6 and 1.8 billion Sm3 of recoverable gas.

The licensees will include the discovery in the Grid formation and gas discovery 16/1-6 S (Verdandi) in a comprehensive assessment of the area.  

The well was not formation-tested, but extensive data acquisition and sampling were carried out.

This is the sixth well in production licence 167. The licence was awarded in the 12th licensing round in 1991.

The well was drilled to vertical and measured depths of 1987 and 2001 metres below the sea surface, respectively, and was terminated in basement rock. Water depth is 114 metres. The well will now be permanently plugged and abandoned.

Well 16/1-29 S was drilled by the Deepsea Bergen drilling facility, which will now proceed to drill appraisal well 15/3-10 in production licence 025 in the central part of the North Sea, where Equinor is the operator.