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Shell takes over operatorship of major European gas field
29/11/2007
On 1 December 2007 A/S Norske Shell (Shell) will assume responsibility for operations on the recently opened Ormen Lange gas field off the coast of Norway.
Until the handover Norsk Hydro led the Ormen Lange development while Shell was responsible for well delivery, subsurface and operations readiness. As field operator, Shell will manage the second phase of the field development, where additional subsea templates will be installed, more gas wells drilled and a concept for field compression developed.
Shell was awarded the operatorship of Ormen Lange by the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy in December 1999.
The gas field was officially opened on 6 October 2007. Production will increase gradually, reaching a peak of 70 million standard cubic metres per day - enough to meet as much as 20% of Britain’s gas needs. Deliveries will probably continue for some 40 years.
David Loughman, Managing Director of Norske Shell, said: “Ormen Lange demonstrates that upstream growth opportunities continue in Europe. Shell’s strategic focus on technology, integration and scale contributed to the successful start-up ahead of schedule and on budget and shows we are delivering on our strategy of more upstream.”
Ormen Lange was developed with sea-floor installations at depths of between 850 and 1,100 metres, combined with an onshore plant at Nyhamna in Aukra local authority in Norway, for processing and exporting the gas. Following processing onshore, gas is transported 1,200 kilometres through the world’s longest subsea pipeline to Easington on the east coast of Britain.
Ormen Lange facts
Partners: | A/S Norske Shell: 17.04 per cent StatoilHydro ASA: 28.91 per cent Petoro AS: 36.48 per cent Dong E&P Norge AS: 10.34 per cent ExxonMobil Exploration & Production Norway AS: 7.23 per cent |
|---|---|
| Operator for the operational phase: | A/S Norske Shell |
| Operator for the development phase: | Norsk Hydro Produksjon AS |
| Location: | Blocks 6305/4, 5, 7 and 8, 120 kilometres north-west of the Møre coast, mid-Norway. |
| Production: | Gas and condensate |
| Reservoir: | The reservoir covers an area roughly 40 kilometres long and eight to 10 kilometres wide, around 2,700-2,900 metres below the surface of the sea. |
| Sea depth: | 850 to 1,100 metres |
Note to editors:
More information and high-resolution photographs of the Ormen Lange development can be found online at: www.shell.no/ormenlange
Contact information:
If you have any queries relating to Shell press releases please contact:
Group Media Relations
Tel: +44 (0)20 7934 3505
Email: media-relations@shell.com
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