Early history of petroleum exploration offshore Norway and its impact on geoscience teaching and research

Knut Bjørlykke

doi:10.17850/njg99-3-2

Abstract

Early history of petroleum exploration offshore Norway and its impact on geoscience teaching and research

Highlights

Historical background, Applied geoscience in NorwayThe purpose of the present paper is to document an overview of the early history of Norwegian petroleum exploration as seen from the perspective of a petroleum geologist who has been involved in Norwegian petroleum activities as an active participant in teaching and research since the beginning
The potential for oil and gas in the North Sea could not have been predicted before the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) was opened for petroleum exploration in 1965
In many sedimentary basins we find evidence of oil based on seepage to the surface, but in the North Sea basin there were no indications of oil on the sea floor or on the surface

Summary

Introduction

The purpose of the present paper is to document an overview of the early history of Norwegian petroleum exploration as seen from the perspective of a petroleum geologist who has been involved in Norwegian petroleum activities as an active participant in teaching and research since the beginning. The potential for oil and gas in the North Sea could not have been predicted before the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) was opened for petroleum exploration in 1965. There was no basis for predicting the oil and gas potential of the North Sea basin offshore Norway before the 1966 well discovered a mature source rock, the Upper Jurassic Kimmeridge Shale. In the early phase in the 1960s and early 1970s Norway had very limited expertise relating to petroleum exploration and production It took some time (up to about 1970) before modern plate tectonics as applied to the North Sea basin The need for Norwegian petroleum-related research Professor Chr. Oftedahl at NTH (formerly at NGU) and Professor Anders Kvale at UiB proposed a Norwegian research programme led by the University of Bergen on the geology of the continental shelf including aerial magnetic measurements and seismic surveys. LM= Lofoten Margin MM= Møre Margin SM= Svalbard Nargin VM= Vøring Margin WSM=Wandel Sea Margin

Shetland Basin

Findings

Conclusions