Fram partners sanction four-field subsea tieback to North Sea Troll facilities

    June 26, 2025
    The Fram Sør project is a combined development of several discoveries that will export oil and gas via Troll C.
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    Courtesy Equinor
    The Troll C platform is located in the North Sea.
    The Troll C platform is located in the North Sea.

    Equinor and its partners in the Fram area of the northern Norwegian North Sea have committed to the Fram Sør subsea tieback development.

    The company has submitted a plan for development and operation to Norway’s Ministry of Energy. The estimated cost of the project is more than NOK 21 billion (US$2 billion).

    Fram Sør encompasses various discoveries with combined recoverable volumes of 115 MMboe, 75% of which is oil and 25% gas. All will be exported via the Troll C plaltform, with production slated to begin at the end of 2029.

    As Troll C is powered from shore, Equinor noted, production from Fram Sør will have very low emissions. The company estimates the CO2 intensity for the development at about 0.5 kg of CO2 per boe, against the average for the Norwegian Continental Shelf of 8 kg.

    “Fram Sør shows the importance of area solutions and close collaboration between partners and authorities in order to realize the resource values on a mature NCS,” said Kjetil Hove, Equinor's executive vice president for Exploration & Production Norway. “We have a large portfolio of projects that will phase in discoveries to our producing fields. Equinor expects to put more than 50 such projects on stream by 2035."

    The project’s two main producing fields will be the 2019 Echino South and 2021 Blasto discoveries; two earlier, smaller discoveries complete the development.

    Fram Sør will employ all-electric christmas trees that will remove the need for hydraulic fluid to be supplied from the platform, with improved monitoring capabilities. The setup is efficient and reliable in terms of subsea christmas trees operations, Equinor added, with a reduced risk of environmental impact.

    Partner Vår Energi estimated prospective unrisked resources in the area at more than 200 MMboe. Following other recent discoveries in the area, Mulder and Rhombi, various further exploration targets will be drilled during the next few years, pursuing further upside.

    The Fram partners are Equinor Energy (45%), Vår Energi (40%) and INPEX Idemitsu Norge (15%).

    Fram Sør is ~20 km north of Troll C and ~120 km northwest of Bergen, in a water depth of about 350 m. The reservoir depth is between 1,800 m and 2,800 m.

    The plan for development and operation calls for a subsea development with 4 x 4 templates, tied back to existing Fram infrastructure and to Troll C for export. Twelve wells should be ready at startup with the remaining four well slots for later development in the Fram/Troll area.

    Oil from the Fram Field is transported through Troll Oil Pipeline II to Mongstad, and gas is exported to Kollsnes via the Troll A platform.

    Contracts to be issued

    Equinor expects award contracts with a total value of about NOK 18 billion (US$1.7 billion), with all awards subject to regulatory approval.

    Those likely to benefit participated in the FEED stage, performing the following tasks:

    • OneSubsea conducted studies of subsea systems;
    • Subsea7 assessed marine installation needs;
    • TechnipFMC reviewed umbilical requirements; and
    • Aker Solutions examined platform modifications.

    Later this year, further contracts will be issued for pipe deliveries, fiber-optic cable and rock installation. A development drilling contract will also follow.

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