Gjøa Development Opens New Frontier

Abstract

In the best tradition of Nordic polar explorers of the past, StatoilHydro is pushing into frontier territory with its Gjøa field development in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. Gjøa, named after the fishing vessel used by Norwegian Roald Amundsen to become the first explorer to navigate the treacherous Northwest Passage, is itself heading into uncharted waters. StatoilHydro hopes the development could open up a whole new area of the Norwegian Continental Shelf for modern day oil and gas pioneers. The Gjøa field and the Vega and Vega South satellites will be developed at a cost of around NOK 38 billion (USD 5.7 billion) with a new semisubmersible platform, which will sit in 1,210 ft (370 m) of water 45 km off the southwestern coast of Norway. Recoverable reserves for the field are put at 82 million bbl of oil and condensate and roughly 1.4 Tcf (40 Bcm) of gas. Vega and Vega South's recoverable reserves are estimated at 26 million bbl of condensate and 636 Bcf (18 Bcm) of gas. Drilling work to tap the fields’ reserves is already under way and a pilot well is currently being drilled to further delineate the field. It is full steam ahead on all fronts as Gjøa Project Director and Vice President for Field Development, Kjetel Digre, explains: "Everything is happening right now. We have just started on the actual drilling and completion program on the field. "We are just about half way through the build program, which is 58% complete. We are close to finishing the hull in South Korea. The major components will be brought to Aker Solutions’ yard in spring for assembly in the autumn." The 15,650 ton hull is being built by Samsung in South Korea and it will be mated with the topsides at Aker Solutions’ yard in Stord, Norway. The topsides includes a 22,000 ton deck and the capacity to accommodate 100 offshore workers will be provided by a 1,650-ton living quarters module, with helideck. The living quarters are currently under construction at Leirvik Module Technology in western Norway. StatoilHydro is operator for Gjøa in the development phase, while Gaz de France takes over as operator when the field comes on stream. Licensees in the license are Gaz de France (30%), Petoro (30%), StatoilHydro (20%), Shell (12%), and RWE Dea (8%).