Sprit Energy is partner in what could be a significant gas/condensate discovery in the Hades/Iris prospects in the Norwegian Sea.

The exploration well 6506/11-10 licence PL 644 B targeted two formations. The well's primary and secondary exploration targets were to prove petroleum in the Lower Cretaceous (Lange formation) and Middle Jurassic (Garn formation), respectively.

In the primary exploration target (Hades), the well encountered a gas/condensate column totalling about 35 metres in the Lange formation. 15 metres of this constitutes the reservoir, which consists of sandstone with moderate to good reservoir properties. The gas/water contact was not encountered. Preliminary estimates indicate that the size of the discovery in the Lange formation is between 19 and 113 mmboe.

In the secondary exploration target (Iris), the well encountered a gas/condensate column totalling about 95 metres in the Garn formation. 85 metres of this constitutes the reservoir, which consists of sandstone with variable reservoir quality from moderate to very good. The gas/water contact was encountered at 4295 metres below sea level. Preliminary estimates indicate that the size of the discovery in the Garn formation is between 19 and 132 mmboe.

Steinar Meland, Subsurface and Exploration Director of Spirit Energy, said: “We have a strong exploration history and this discovery proves we have a team that can deliver value from exploration. However, there is some uncertainty regarding the volumes in place and the numbers could be a bit on the high side, so more work is needed to get a better understanding of the size of the discovery. I expect an appraisal campaign is needed to prove up the larger volume scenarios.”

The well was drilled by the Deepsea Bergen semi-submersible drilling rig, about 5 kilometres north-west of the Morvin field in the central part of the Norwegian Sea and 245 kilometres north-west of Kristiansund.

Licences PL 644 and PL 644 B are operated by OMV (Norge) AS (30%). Partners are Statoil Petroleum AS (40%), Faroe Petroleum Norge AS (20%) and Spirit Energy Norge (10%).

About Spirit Energy

Spirit Energy was created in 2017 following the combination of Centrica’s Exploration & Production business and Bayerngas Norge AS. The business is 69%-owned by Centrica plc, with the remaining 31% owned by Bayerngas Norge’s former shareholders, led by Stadtwerke München and Bayerngas GmbH.

The independent company was formed to combine a complementary mix of producing and development assets, and creates a robust, self-financing business to allow both organic and inorganic growth.