en.Wedoany.com Reported - Equinor ASA has awarded contracts totaling approximately NOK 6 billion (USD 600 million) for four subsea development projects on the Norwegian continental shelf, including Troll West Increased Gas Recovery North (TWIN), Omega Sør, Tyrihans Nord, and Brime. These projects are expected to contribute between 130 million and 220 million barrels of oil equivalent to future production.
Equinor anticipates implementing around 75 subsea development projects by 2035. Gunnar Nakken, Senior Vice President for Projects and Subsea on the Norwegian continental shelf, stated that to realize these resources, the company needs to develop smaller discoveries faster and at lower costs, aiming to halve costs and execution time by simplifying processes and standardizing solutions with partners and suppliers.
In terms of contract allocation, TechnipFMC will supply subsea production systems for the Brime, Omega Sør, and Tyrihans Nord projects, and install rigid pipelines at the Troll field; Tenaris will provide line pipe. OneSubsea will supply subsea production systems for the TWIN project and provide umbilicals for all four developments. Ocean Installer has secured a marine operations contract for the installation and connection of subsea facilities, control cables, and flexible pipelines. NOV will provide flexible pipelines for Omega Sør, Tyrihans Nord, and Brime.
Nakken noted that these equipment have long lead times, and to halve the time from discovery to production, early investment is required. The company is ordering standard equipment; if one of the initial projects is not approved by partners or authorities, the equipment can be used for subsequent projects. Among the four projects, only TWIN has received final investment approval.
TWIN is the third phase of the Troll West gas cap development. Partners approved the project in June, aiming to increase gas reserves by approximately 11 billion cubic meters. The development includes drilling two wells from a new subsea manifold connected to existing infrastructure, extending a control cable and monoethylene glycol pipeline to the new infrastructure, with production flowing to Troll A and then to the Kollsnes gas processing plant. Equinor operates Troll with a 30.55% interest, with partners including Petoro AS (55.93%), A/S Norske Shell (8.19%), TotalEnergies EP Norge AS (3.69%), and ConocoPhillips Skandinavia AS (1.64%).
Brime is planned as a four-well subsea development tied back to the existing Visund Sør manifold. The gas-dominated stream will be processed at Gullfaks C and exported via Kårstø. The project also allows for phased development of the nearby Nøkken discovery through sidetracks from two Brime wells, with recoverable resources estimated at 16 million to 34 million barrels of oil equivalent. Equinor is the operator with a 74.66% interest, and Petoro holds 25.34%.
Omega Sør is an oil discovery near the Snorre field, found earlier this year, with an estimated 25 million to 89 million barrels of recoverable oil. Plans include a subsea manifold and a Cap-X production satellite tied back to existing infrastructure, with production routed through Snorre A and exported via Gullfaks. Equinor operates the project with a 31% interest, with partners including Petoro (30%), Harbour Energy Norge AS (24.5%), INPEX Idemitsu Norge AS (9.6%), and Vår Energi ASA (4.9%).
Tyrihans Nord, discovered in 1984, is planned as a two-well subsea tieback project connecting to an existing production pipeline between the Tyrihans field and the Kristin platform in the Norwegian Sea. Gas will be processed at Kristin and exported via Kårstø, with recoverable resources estimated at 20 million to 30 million barrels of oil equivalent, primarily gas. Equinor is the operator with a 36.32% interest, with partners including TotalEnergies EP Norge AS (23.15%), Petoro AS (22.52%), and Vår Energi ASA (18.02%).
Sissel has also been included in Equinor's first batch of standardized development projects. The discovery, made in January, was initially planned as a new Cap-X development but has been simplified to a single well drilled from the existing Utgard manifold, with recoverable resources estimated at 6 million to 28 million barrels of oil equivalent. Equinor holds a 50% operating interest, with Orlen Upstream Norway AS holding the remaining 50%.
