North Sea oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons, comprising liquid petroleum and natural gas, produced from petroleum reservoirs beneath the North Sea.
Snøhvit(English: Snow White) is the name of a natural gas field in the Norwegian Sea, situated 140 kilometres (87 mi) northwest of Hammerfest, Norway. The northern part of the Norwegian Sea is often described as the Barents Sea by offshore petroleum companies. Snøhvit is also the name of a development of Snøhvit and the two neighbouring natural gas fields Albatross and Askeladden. Estimated recoverable reserves are 193 billion cubic metres of natural gas, 113 million barrels of condensate, and 5.1 million tonnes of natural gas liquids (NGL). The development comprises 21 wells. The Snøhvit development is operated by Equinor on behalf of six gas companies owning licenses:
The Brent field was an oil and gas field operated by Shell UK Limited. It was located in 470ft of water, in the East Shetland Basin of the North Sea, 186 kilometres (116 mi) north-east of Lerwick in the Shetland Islands, Scotland.
Ekofisk is an oil field in block 2/4 of the Norwegian sector of the North Sea about 320 km (200 mi) southwest of Stavanger. Discovered in 1969 by Phillips Petroleum Company, it remains one of the most important oil fields in the North Sea. This was the first discovery of oil after the drilling of over 200 exploration wells in the North Sea "triggered" by the Groningen gas field discovery. In 1971, Phillips started producing directly to tankers from four subsea wells. Oil production is planned to continue until 2048; concessions given, yet expected to continue beyond 2050.
The Statfjord oil field is a large oil and gas field covering 580 km2 along the U.K.-Norwegian boundary of the North Sea at a water depth of 145 m, discovered in 1974 by Mobil and since 1987 operated by Equinor.
Oseberg is an offshore oil field with a gas cap in the North Sea located 140 km (87 mi) northwest of the city of Bergen on the southwestern coast of Norway. The field, which is 25 km long by 7 km wide, was discovered in 1979 and its development is known to be one of the significant milestones in emergence of Norway's independent oil and gas industry. The Oseberg field was named after Oseberg ship, one of Norway's most significant archeological discoveries. The ancient Viking ship from the early 9th century was discovered in a 1904 historical excavation of a burial mound at the Oseberg Farm, south of Oslo.
The Piper oilfield is a substantial North Sea oilfield covering 30.1 km2. It lies roughly halfway between Aberdeen and Bergen, at the eastern end of the Moray Firth basin. Oil extracted from it is piped to Scotland, where it is stabilised at an oil plant on the island of Flotta, in the Orkney archipelago, while gas is shipped via the Frigg gas pipeline. In June 1975, the Piper Alpha oil platform was placed over the field in 144 metres of water, secured in place by 24 piles extending 116 metres beneath the seabed. The platform was designed for simultaneous drilling and production. Piper Alpha was the site of the world's deadliest oil platform disaster when it was destroyed by an explosion in 1988, with the loss of 167 lives. Piper Bravo was installed in 1992. Talisman Energy acquired a controlling interest in 2000.
This is an overview of Equinor's operations in various countries. Equinor is a Norwegian petroleum company.
The Forties Oil Field is the second largest oil field in the North Sea, after the Clair oilfield, which is located 110 miles east of Aberdeen. It was discovered in 1970 and first produced oil in 1975 under ownership of British Petroleum, now called BP.
Equinor ASA is a Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger, Norway. It is primarily a petroleum company operating in 36 countries with additional investments in renewable energy. In the 2020 Forbes Global 2000, Equinor was ranked as the 169th-largest public company in the world. In 2023, the company was ranked 52nd in the same list. As of 2021, the company has 21,126 employees.
The Sleipner gas field is a natural gas field in the block 15/9 of the North Sea, about 250 kilometres (160 mi) west of Stavanger, Norway. Two parts of the field are in production, Sleipner West, and Sleipner East (1981). The field produces natural gas and light oil condensates from sandstone structures about 2,500 metres (8,200 ft) below sea level. It is operated by Equinor. The field is named after the eight-legged steed Sleipnir of Odin a widely revered god in Norse mythology.
Heimdal is an offshore natural gas field in the North Sea located 212 kilometres (132 mi) northwest of Stavanger, Norway. Heimdal serves as a connection hub for processing and distribution of natural gas from satellite fields.
Skirne, which also includes the Byggve deposit, is an offshore gas field in the North Sea located 24 kilometres (15 mi) east of the Heimdal gas field and 140 kilometres (87 mi) from Stavanger, Norway. The depth of the water in the field area is 120 metres (390 ft). Both Skirne and Byggve are considered satellites to Heimdal field and are connected to it by subsea pipelines. TotalFinaElf which is the operator had received the approval from Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy for development of the fields in 2002. The company holds 40% interest in the project. Other stakeholders are Petoro and Centrica. Both Skirne and Byggve combined have an estimated 230 billion cubic feet of natural gas and about 10 million barrels of condensate.
The Johan Sverdrup oil field is an oil field in the North Sea, about 140 kilometres (87 mi) west of Stavanger, Norway. The field lies in two different production licenses and consists of two different discoveries called Avaldsnes and Aldous Major South. When it was revealed that these discoveries constituted a single field, it was renamed Johan Sverdrup after the father of Norwegian parliamentarism. The field has not yet been unitized between production licenses 501, 501B, and 265. Johan Sverdrup is expected to hold 1.9–3.0 billion barrels of oil. According to Statoil, the field is in 110 to 120 metres water depth, and the reservoir is at 1,900 meters depth.
The Rosebank oil and gas field lies west of Shetland. It is operated by Equinor; Suncor and Siccar Point Energy. The discovery well was drilled in 2004. A final investment decision for Rosebank was planned to be taken by May 2022. In 2022, Siccar Point Energy was acquired by Ithaca Energy, a daughter company of Delek Group.
Niger has a long history of petroleum exploration dating back to the 1970s. However, it is only since 2011 with the opening of the Agadem oilfield and the Soraz refinery near Zinder that petroleum is being produced in Niger. The oil and gas extracted from the Agadem field are processed at the Soraz refinery. The refined products are primarily for domestic consumption. Since the beginning of oil extraction, it appears that the reserves have been underestimated: from an estimate of 324 million barrel reserves in 2008, it is believed that reserves are three times higher, near 1 billion barrels in 2013.
Wushi Oil Field is an oil and gas field located in the South China Sea Exclusive Economic Zone, 30 miles from Zhanjiang, off the southern coast of Guangdong, China.
The Claymore oil field is located in Block 14/19 on the United Kingdom's Continental Shelf. It is 161 km (100 mi) northeast of Aberdeen in the Central North Sea. The field is named after a double-edged broadsword used by Highland Scots. Recoverable oil reserves were estimated to be 511 million barrels from an initial oil in place of 1452.9 million barrels. The field was developed through a large steel jacket platform standing in 110 m of water. A separate accommodation platform was installed in 1995. Fluid production was supported by gas lift and significant water injection. The production platform also supports production from the Scapa field, the Golden Eagle field and the Tartan field. Oil is exported to the Flotta terminal.
Alwyn North is a major oil and gas field in the United Kingdom sector of the northern North Sea, 160 km east of the Shetland Islands. The field was developed through two bridge-linked offshore platforms and a number of subsea satellite wellheads. Alwyn North has been producing oil and gas since 1987 and is still (2023) in operation.
