Statoil : Fram C East starts production to the Troll C platform

The development helps maximise production from the Fram area, in addition to boosting Troll C production and activities.

Fram C East is a long production well drilled from the existing Fram subsea template. Production will be tied back to Troll C, an important North Sea hub.

Gas will be transported to Kollsnes via Troll A, whereas oil will be piped to Mongstad for further processing.

Originally estimated at some NOK 800 million capital expenditures have now been reduced to some NOK 600 million thanks to a simple, smart well concept and significantly increased drilling efficiency.

'Fram C East is a small development project, but a key element of our plans to capture maximum value in the Fram area,' says Lars Høier, vice president operations, Troll and Fram.

'We are pleased to see that our targeted efforts to cut costs and improve profitability on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) have benefitted this development project. Fram C East has seen profitability rise from good to even better, and will see a positive cash flow as early as in 2016,' Høier adds.

Statoil has a long-standing record of infrastructure development on the NCS, which is key to the profitability of small-size development projects.

Last week Statoil submitted the Plan for Development and Operation of Byrding (north of Fram) together with another partnership. Production from this field, too, is tied back to the Troll C platform.

'Our strong position and role in several partnerships in the Troll / Fram area give us flexibility and possibilities to generate high value by taking an overall approach to the area, maximising the use of the existing infrastructure. This represents good resource management, benefitting our partners, our owners, suppliers and society at large,' says Gunnar Nakken, senior vice president, Operations West.

Capital expenditures totalling some NOK 600 million, recoverable resources are estimated at 18.2 million barrels of oil and 1.6 billion sm3 of gas. Profitability is resilient with a low break-even.