Statoil is planning to drill around 20 to 25 wells on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) in 2014.
The company will be the operator for the two-thirds of the wells, which are planning to be drilled.
Statoil is also planning to carry drilling in five to seven new wells in the Barents Sea in 2014, where it will test the potential in the Hoop area and continue exploration drilling near the Johan Castberg discoveries such as Skrugard and Havis.
Statoil NCS exploration senior vice president GroHaatvedt said the company’s exploration success rate on the Norwegian continental shelf has been over 70%, compared to an industry average of 49%.
“We believe that our competence and experience throughout the value chain give us an advantage when prioritising the right prospects, performing efficient exploration and ensuring value creation,” added Haatvedt.
Statoil holds partnership in the OMV-operated Wisting Central discovery in PL537, which is a new oil play in the Hoop area, while the company plans to drill the Atlantis and Apollo prospects, which are located around 50km north of PL537, during Q2- Q3 of 2014.
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