Venture secures rigs for North Sea programs

Offshore staff

ABERDEEN -- Venture Production plans an active drilling program across the UK shelf over the next 12 months.

The jackup Noble Julie Robertson is currently drilling the Andrea exploration prospect for the company in the southern gas basin, and will then transfer to Annabel East for an appraisal well.

Recently another jackup, the Ensco 92, began a two-well program for Venture in the East Irish Sea. Here appraisal drilling on the Marram structure will be followed by an exploratory well on the Whitbeck prospect.

Close to the UK/Dutch median line in the southern North Sea, a newbuild, heavy-duty jackup is on its way from a shipyard in China, and will start work later this summer on two second-phase development wells on the Chiswick field.

Also later in the year, the semisub Noble Ton van Langeveld will drill an appraisal well on the Acorn prospect in the central North Sea.

Venture is also making progress with new projects in the southern sector. Tie-in and topsides modification work is on schedule for the Eris/Ceres developments, with first gas scheduled for this fall. On the Dutch shelf, construction is under way of a self-installing platform for the F3/FA development.

07/01/2009