Offshore activity in the UK and Norwegian North Sea continues to evolve, with new drilling campaigns, FPSO performance updates, and strategic agreements shaping the region’s energy landscape. The following compilations sums up the latest news coming out of this region.
Teal West oil well spuds
The Shelf Drilling Fortress jackup rig has spud the Teal West well in the central UK North Sea for operator Anasuria Hibiscus UK (AHUK).
Parent company Hibiscus Petroleum’s reported Sept. 17 that this is one of just three development wells planned across the UK offshore sector this year.
Drilling is taking place 4 km from the FPSO Anasuria. Upon completion, the well will be tied back to the FPSO, with subsea installation activities (umbilical and pipeline) due to start early next spring. First oil should follow by mid-2026.
AHUK General Manager Tom Reeve said, “We are continuing to invest in the UK North Sea, as we believe that at some point factors, such as energy security, the environmental cost of importing LNG and the preservation of local jobs, will encourage the UK government to proactively and positively revise the current fiscal regime. “
In an earlier results update, Hibiscus said it expected Teal West, in license P2535, to produce about 4,824 bbl/d of oil, with estimated overall capex of $162 million.
AHUK has also been looking to farm down its interest in the nearby Greater Marigold area development due to the high capex requirements.
Hartshead enters well carry agreement for offshore D&C
In the southern UK North Sea, Australian independent Hartshead Resources reported Sept. 1 that it had entered a binding well carry agreement with Viaro Energy subsidiary Rockrose.
This should cover Hartshead for its full share of costs for the drilling and completion of the Phase C well work obligation on license P2607. Hartshead's interest in the joint venture will be reduced from 40% to 35%, with an amended Phase 1 fields development costs cap of just over $197 million to be applied after the well work is completed.
In addition, the two companies have submitted a joint application to the North Sea Transition Authority for a two-year extension to Phase C of the license, as the work program has been impacted by delays in the environmental permitting process and supply chain constraints.
Further downtime at Triton FPSO
Serica Energy’s latest central North Sea update of Sept. 10 stated that production through the Dana Petroleum-operated Triton FPSO, which has undergone various equipment-related interruptions over the past year, has had to be further reduced to due to a vibration issue with the compression trains.
This will necessitate further repairs, with normal production unlikely to resume until around the end of September. Dana has also notified Serica that subsea intervention work will take place on the satellite Bittern Field in November; this will have the knock-on effect of halting production from the Evelyn and Gannet fields.
BEL Valves recently reported that it has supplied small bore needle valves and gate valves for Subsea7. All have been installed in subsea equipment delivering production from the Belinda and Bittern oil fields to the Triton FPSO.
Petrofac secures North Sea contract extension
The Shell-operated ONEgas West venture has extended Petrofac’s service contract in the southern UK sector, Petrofac said in a Sept. 15 news release. The company has been providing support to the offshore Clipper South complex, Leman Alpha assets, Bacton Terminal, and OneGas Barge campaigns since 2020.
Jotun FPSO reaches peak production
Finally, Vår Energi reported Sept. 10 that its Jotun FPSO in the Norwegian North Sea had delivered peak production of over 80,000 boe/d ahead of schedule. The revamped vessel was brought onstream on June 22.
All 14 subsea production wells are online and work continues to further optimize production from the FPSO.
