Statoil bought a 12% holding in Norwegian company Atlantis, which has patented technology for deepwater drilling and oil and gas production. The solution uses an artificial seabed to reduce the distance between a floating installation and the bottom of the sea. A steel tank at 300 m water depth provides a subsea platform for installing drilling and production equipment. That makes it possible to use known technology even when producing oil and gas several kilometers beneath the surface of the sea.
"This technology is being considered for a number of deepwater areas, both off Norway and internationally," said Martin Sigmundstad, Vice President for Industrial Development in Statoil.
The Atlantis approach allows deepwater rig operations to be carried out quickly and safely.
BP and Shell are participating in planning and construction of the first Atlantis prototype, which will form the basis for possible use of the technology off western Africa.
The Atlantis solution has been patented in roughly 30 countries, with applications pending in about 70 more. Other shareholders in the company are Andreas K L Ugland, O T Tønnevold, Aker Kværner, and the Rogaland Research Institute.
