Portal partners
Good news for Norwegian LOTOSU deposits
Author:Mariusz Dasiewicz
At the beginning of last week, Equinor and their partners made an investment decision on the partial electrification of the Sleipner deposit. This will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions on the Norwegian continental shelf. A few days later, Aker BP and Equinor concluded a long-awaited commercial agreement on the development strategy of the NOAKA project. The partner of both licenses is LOTOS Exploration & Production Norge.
The announcement of both information coincided with the decision of the Norwegian Parliament, which approved additional tax credits for the oil and gas sector on 12 June to stimulate investment and protect jobs. Earlier Prime Minister Ernie Solberg proposed a plan to postpone taxes. The new legislation does not force 78% income tax on profits, but increases relief from new investments, which means that taxable profits may be lower for several years. Adopted regulations will cover projects approved by the government by the end of 2023. They will allow for economically efficient management of, among others, NOAKA deposits even if low oil prices continue on the market.
Sleipner: lower emissions equals higher efficiency
The plan for electrification of the Sleipner deposit will contribute to the further development of the Norwegian continental shelf towards zero greenhouse gas emissions in 2050. These activities, in addition to environmental benefits, will also improve the economic efficiency of the exploitation of deposits, inter alia by reducing the cost of emissions charges. Emission savings from all fields related to Utsira High are estimated at approximately 1.15 million tonnes of CO2 per year. According to Sleipner's assumptions, the share of this reduction will be over 150 000 tonnes of CO2 per year.
The solution involves the installation of a new 28 km high voltage cable from the infrastructure located on the Sleipner deposit to the platform located on the Gina Krog deposit (Utsira High area). In turn, according to a previous decision, by the end of 2022 it will be connected by a high-voltage line to land. In periods where the power demand will be greater than the efficiency of the designed solution, Sleipner will supplement this level using its gas turbines as it is now.
In parallel with the investment decision, partners (Equinor, Vår Energi, LOTOS Norge and KUFPEC) submitted an updated deposit management plan to the Norwegian authorities. Equinor estimates that the investment in electrification of Sleipner and Gina Krog will total NOK 1.5 billion (about PLN 630 million).
LOTOS Norge owns 15% of the Sleipner deposit located in the North Sea. As of 31 December 2019, the remaining reserves in category 2P of Sleipner deposits were estimated for LOTOSU's share of 11.7 million boe (with a significant natural gas advantage – 73%). In 2019, the average daily extraction from Sleipner deposits amounted to 11.4 thousand boe/day for the participation of GK LOTOS.
Milestones for the NOAKA project
On Thursday, June 11, Aker BP and Equinor concluded an agreement on the terms of commercial implementation of the NOAKA project (licenses: North of Alvheim, Krafla and Askja). This is the basis for starting work in the preparation of the Plan for Development and Operations (PDO). The submission of the PDO for approval to the Norwegian authorities is expected until the end of 2022.
The considered concept of the development of NOAKA deposits assumes a production platform in the southern part operated by Aker BP, an unmanned platform in the northern part operated by Equinor, and several satellite platforms to connect all the discovered deposits in the area. Partners plan to apply state-of-the-art technology here to ensure high efficiency and low emissions.
Porozumienie to jest istotnym kamieniem milowym w celu zagospodarowania złóż. NOAKA będzie jednym z kluczowych projektów rozwojowych na Szelfie Norweskim, z łącznym potencjałem ponad 500 mln boe zasobów wydobywalnych (udział 100%). Dla LOTOSU projekt stanowi bazę do długofalowego rozwoju w Norwegii przy współpracy z kluczowymi operatorami na szelfie – AkerBP i Equinorem.
Projekt NOAKA znajduje się na Morzu Północnym. Dotyczy zagospodarowania złóż odkrytych w obszarze na północ od Heimdal: Frigg Gamma Delta, Langfjellet, Rind, Fulla oraz Froy, ze średnim udziałem LOTOSU na poziomie 10% i operatorem AkerBP, w także złóż Krafla oraz Askja, w których LOTOS aktualnie nie posiada udziałów, a których operatorem jest firma Equinor.
W 2019 roku w LOTOS uczestniczył w odkryciu złoża ropy Liatarnet, będącego największym odkryciem ubiegłego roku w Norwegii, które będzie również mogło być zagospodarowane w ramach projektu NOAKA. Jego wielkość wydobywalna szacowana jest wstępnie w przedziale ok. 80-200 mln boe, co przekłada się na udział LOTOSU na poziomie ok. 8-19 mln boe. O znaczeniu tego wydarzenia świadczą statystyki, zgodnie z którymi po 2011 roku nowe odkrycia na Morzu Północnym miały średnio zaledwie 20 mln boe. Obecnie prowadzone są dalsze prace w kierunku określenia oczekiwanej wielkości zasobów i koncepcji zagospodarowania tego złoża.
Source: LOTOS Group
