Norwegian part state-owned oil and gas enterprise Statoil has found new oil deposits in the North Sea that could represent the largest new discoveries in the past 20 years, eclipsing massive finds already revealed in 2011.
The 65 meter oil column located in sandstone from the Jurassic period, estimated to contain at least 200 to 400 million barrels of oil equivalent, was made at the Aldous Major South prospect. Statoil and its partners expect further finds in Aldous North and other areas immediately around their new discovery, which could mean that it holds even more oil than the enormous discovery made early this year at Skrugard in the Barents Sea, believed to have at least 500 million barrels of oil equivalent.
Erik Haugane, the CEO of Det Norske – one of Statoil’s partners in the project along with Petoro, and Lundin Norway – commented to newspaper Aftenposten that it was “great fun to be along with creating such value.” Det Norske has made five finds already this year, disclosing further new gas discoveries in the Barents Sea today that helped lift its share price. Haugane now believes that further exploration in Aldous North will see the number of barrels of oil equivalent go above those found in Norne in 1992, the last confirmed 500 million barrel find.
Statoil’s director of exploration in Norway, Gro G. Haatvedt, told newspaper Dagens Næringsliv that the find was “considerable,” promising to “take initiative to find a good area solution that maximizes value added.” The oil was described to be of high quality.
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