Phase II drilling program ongoing at Ringhorne

ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Norway AS and its partners have started a major drilling program at the Ringhorne field in the North Sea.  Several wells will be drilled from the Ringhorne platform, to continue to develop the area’s resources.

The Phase II drilling program follows extensive geological, reservoir and drilling studies and leverages successful 4-D seismic programs conducted in 2006 and 2009 at the Balder and Ringhorne fields. The most recent seismic program involved the acquisition of 4-D data over 300 square kilometers.  This was one of the largest 4-D seismic programs ever performed by ExxonMobil.

The Phase II drilling program consists of world-class wells that will take full advantage of ExxonMobil’s proprietary Fast Drill Process and best practices in drilling and well completions. The program includes extended reach drilling to almost eight kilometers and will result in the longest production well to date at the Ringhorne Field.  

The drilling will have positive economic impacts within the Norwegian petroleum cluster. KCA DEUTAG Drilling Norge AS operates the drilling rig and employs 125 people. NorSea supports the logistics needs of the drilling program from its shorebase in Dusavika.

The Balder, Jotun and Ringhorne fields have collectively produced about 500 million oil equivalent barrels over the past 10 years.


ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

ExxonMobil in Norway
ExxonMobil’s production in Norway was 411,000 barrels of oil equivalent in 2009, corresponding to around 10% of the total Norwegian production, and also 10% of ExxonMobil’s production worldwide. ExxonMobil is the second-largest producer in Norway. In 2009, the company’s total Norwegian income was more than NOK 64 billion, its investments were NOK 5.2 billion, and it paid NOK 29 billion in taxes.

Ringhorne Field
The Ringhorne field is located about nine kilometers north of the Balder FPSO and includes a platform with initial processing and water injection capabilities. Production is routed to the Balder and Jotun FPSO installations for final processing, storage and offloading. Production commenced in February 2003.

Also in 2003, two discoveries were made in the Ringhorne area. Ringhorne West commenced production in April 2004, within a year of discovery, while Ringhorne East started to produce in March 2006. In 2009, the Ringhorne field produced an average of 84,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Norway AS is the operator for Ringhorne and has 100% ownership in all the Ringhorne fields except for the Ringhorne East Unit, where ExxonMobil's equity is 77.4%. The other Ringhorne East Unit participants are Statoil (14.8%) and Petoro (7.8%).

If you want more information about the project, please contact:
Public and Government Affairs Manager - Kristin Kragseth
Work phone: 51 60 63 26
Cell phone: 951 16199