OMV Norge Receives Drilling Permit for North Sea Well

OMV Norge, a subsidiary of Austria’s OMV, has secured a drilling permit from Norwegian authorities for a wildcat well in the North Sea. The permit allows the company to commence drilling activities next month using a semi-submersible rig owned by Transocean, an offshore drilling contractor.

The Norwegian Offshore Directorate (NOD) has granted OMV Norge the drilling permit for the 35/6-6 wellbore in production license (PL) 1109, awarded on February 19, 2021, and valid until February 19, 2028.

OMV Norge operates the license with a 30% ownership interest, while partners DNO Norge, Pandion Energy, and Aker BP hold the remaining 30%, 20%, and 20% interests, respectively. Recent stake exchanges between OKEA and DNO will see DNO retain a 20% interest in PL 1109.

Drilling Plans and Partnerships

The Horatio well, scheduled for the first quarter of 2025, will be located approximately 20 km northwest of the Gjøa platform. The drilling will be carried out using Transocean’s Transocean Norge semi-submersible rig, the first to receive the Abate (Power+) notation for greenhouse gas abatement.

Transocean Norge secured a 17-well contract in Norway in September 2022, with day rates ranging between $350,000 and $430,000 for drilling activities from 2023 to 2027.

Recent Success and Discoveries

OMV recently completed drilling the wildcat well 6605/6-1 S in the Norwegian Sea, targeting the Haydn/Monn exploration prospects. The drilling led to a gas discovery with estimated recoverable volumes ranging from 30 to 140 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe).