Page 14 - EurOil Week 14 2022

EurOil POLICY EurOil

Greece to revive offshore gas exploration

GREECE GREECE is looking to revive offshore natural and energy environment … requires every coun-
gas exploration in order to safeguard its energy try to make even more decisive steps towards its
Greece has produced security amid soaring prices across Europe, gov- energy security and sufficiency by searching for
only small quantities of ernment sources told Reuters on April 5. new energy sources,”
oil to date. Greece has produced small quantities of oil Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is
in the past, including at the now-mature South expected to make announcements on the strat-
Kavala and Prions concessions. It has made egy shift early next week, a second official said.
on-and-off attempts to explore its natural gas Greece could potentially hold hundreds of
potential over the years, but low prices and a billions of cubic metres of gas, although drilling
shift in strategy towards renewables have stalled is needed to confirm how much could actually be
plans. recovered. Greece’s hydrocarbons commission
Across Europe, however, soaring energy said last week that the authority had proposed an
prices and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have led “ambitious but feasible” gas exploration plan that
countries to prioritise energy security, especially could pave the way to test drilling taking place
as extra domestic supply will help the continent in four years. State-owned Hellenic Petroleum
phase out Russian imports. holds gas exploration licences in the Ionian Sea
Greece relies on Russia for around 40% of and has recently shot seismic surveys in the area
its gas, but is looking to replace this supply with as a preliminary step towards this.
extra LNG imports and indigenous production, A consortium of TotalEnergies, ExxonMobil
according to Reuters. and Hellenic Petroleum also control licences
“In the coming days, Greece will make for two offshore blocks west and south-west of
announcements to accelerate exploration in the Crete. According to Reuters, the state would be
Ionian Sea and west of Crete,” a government offi- willing to grant these operators extra time to
cial told the news agency. “This new geopolitical undertake seismic surveys if they requested it.™

PROJECTS & COMPANIES

Equinor makes “significant”

find off Norway

NORWAY EQUINOR has made a significant oil and gas commercialised either through development or
discovery in the Norwegian North Sea with a sale, “given the high-value barrels that we have
Longboat added that “excellent” reservoir quality, its licence partner discovered.”
the discovery had Longboat Energy reported on April 5. As of press time, Equinor has not confirmed
excellent reservoir The find was made at the Kveikje exploration the find, and neither has the Norwegian Petro-
quality. well at licence PL293B, which Equinor operates leum Directorate.
with a 51% stake. Besides Longboat, which has The Kveikje well was spudded using the
a 10% interest in the project, the other partners Odfjell-owned Deepsea Stavanger semi-sub-
are DNO (29%) and Inpex (10%). According to mersible rig. It reached a vertical depth of 2,078
Longboat, the group has found between 28 and m below sea level.
48mn barrels of oil equivalent, which exceeds the Longboat added that a data acquisition pro-
pre-drill expectation. gramme at the Kveikje Main and Hordaland res-
Longboat added that the discovery had excel- ervoirs had been completed, involving logging
lent reservoir quality and is situated near exist- while drilling, wireline logging, fluid sampling
ing infrastructure, which should make a simple and coring. The group’s licence for PL293B,
development possible using multiple export which Equinor secured in February, covers the
options. drilling of two wells.
“Longboat is very pleased to have made Kveikje is the fifth well in a seven-well cam-
a significant commercial discovery in the paign at prospects that Longboat farmed into last
Kveikje well,” Longboat CEO Helge Hammer year, and it is the third of these boreholes to result
commented. “Excellent reservoir quality, close in a discovery. The next well due to be drilled is
proximity to infrastructure and multiple devel- Cambozola, which Longboat hopes will be a
opment options make this an important and val- “play opener,” targeting one of Norway’s largest
uable resource and we look forward to working gas prospects. In the middle of the year, the com-
with the operator to mature the forward plan.” pany will target another large gas prospect called
The company said the asset could be Copernicus. ™

P14 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 14 07•April•2022