ExxonMobil makes minor oil discovery southeast of Jotun field

May 22, 2009
ExxonMobil Exploration & Production Norway has proven oil with wildcat well 25/8-16 S and appraisal well 25/8-16 A in the North Sea.

Offshore staff

STAVANGER -- ExxonMobil Exploration & Production Norway has proven oil with wildcat well 25/8-16 S and appraisal well 25/8-16 A in the North Sea.

The primary exploration target for the well was to prove petroleum in Paleocene reservoir rocks. The secondary exploration target was to prove petroleum in reservoir rocks from the Lower Jurassic. Limited quantities of oil were proven in a relatively thin reservoir in the Paleocene (the Heimdal formation). The secondary target in the Statfjord Formation was water-bearing, the company reports. None of the wells were formation-tested, but data collection and sampling were conducted.

The semisubmersibleBredford Dolphin drilled well 25/8-16 S to a vertical depth of 2,107 m (6,193 ft) below sea level; the well was concluded in the Statfjord formation in Lower Jurassic rocks. Well 25/8-16 A was drilled to a vertical depth of 2,164 m (7,100 ft) and was concluded in the Shetland Group.

The wells will now be permanently plugged and abandoned.

05/22/2009