Project Profile
Value: US$753 million
Location: Block 25/11 in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea
Water Depth: 120 metres
Reserves: 75 million barrels of oil
Start-up Year: 2014
The Svalin field is situated on Block 25/11 in 394 feet (120 metres) of water in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. Statoil submitted a development plan for its fast-track Svalin field in the North Sea to Norway’s authorities, with total investments targeted at Nkr4.5 billion (US$753 million). The field’s two structures – Svalin C and Svalin M – are estimated to hold about 75 million barrels of oil equivalent in total and will be developed as tiebacks to the nearby Grane platform in a water depth of 125 metres.
Svalin M, discovered in 2008, will be produced from a well to be drilled from the platform and is due to come on stream at the end of next year. Svalin C, found in 1992, will be tied back to the Grane facility using a six-kilometre flowline and is scheduled for start-up in the summer of 2014. The platform’s gas compression facility will be modified to handle gas output from Svalin while oil will be commingled with Grane’s production and transported through an existing pipeline for storage and shipment from the Sture terminal. Svalin, which is expected to produce until 2030, will help mitigate a decline in oil and gas throughput at Grane by using the platform’s processing facilities, according to Statoil. The development plan handed over to Norway’s Oil & Energy Ministry marks the eighth project in Statoil’s fast-track field development programme, geared to bringing online marginal finds quickly via existing infrastructure using standardised technology.
The company has already dished out several contracts on the project, with Aker Solutions winning both the subsea production system and the flowline award, and Subsea 7 securing the subsea construction, umbilicals, risers and flowlines deal. These awards are, however, conditional on final government approval of the project. Statoil operates the field with a 57% stake with partners Petoro (30%) and ExxonMobil (13%). In December 2011, Statoil awarded Aker Solutions the contract for engineering, procurement and construction of the subsea production system for the Svalin project. The Svalin umbilical will be delivered in Q2 2013.
Operators:
Statoil: Operator with 57% interest
Petoro: 30% interest
ExxonMobil: 13% interest
Contractors:
Aker Solutions: Engineering, procurement and construction of the subsea production system
Diamond Offshore: Drilling contractor
Subsea 7: Pipeline, marine operations and subsea construction, umbilicals, risers and flowlines
Transocean: Drilling services using the Transocean Leader mobile drilling facility