DUC Approves New Platform in Danish North Sea

A new unmanned platform in the Danish North Sea has been approved by partners of the Danish Underground Consortium (DUC). The USD 800 million investment is expected to add reserves and resources of 50 million barrels of oil equivalent over the next 30 years to the Danish production.

“The expansion of the Tyra Southeast development is the largest investment by the DUC partners since the approval of Halfdan Phase 4 in 2007. This is the kind of investment needed to secure future Danish oil and gas production. The new host platform and wells will add significantly to our production, and we expect it to produce for the next 30 years,” said Mark Wallace, Managing Director for Maersk Oil Danish Business Unit, the operator of the DUC.

The new platform will produce a mixture of oil and gas. The project is expected to deliver approx. 20 million barrels of oil and 170 billion standard cubic feet of gas, combined reserves and resources of 50 million barrels of oil equivalent, with a peak production in 2017 of some 20,000 boed. The total investment in the Tyra Southeast expansion of USD 800 million includes the platform, pipelines and drilling of the wells.

“The Danish North Sea still contains significant oil and gas resources. However, the remaining oil and gas is becoming progressively more difficult to extract requiring efficient development, new technology and continued large investments. The Tyra Southeast development is an example of our efforts to maximise recovery from the Danish North Sea. The investment represents an important part of the next chapter in the Danish oil production,” said Wallace.

Maersk Oil has – as operator of DUC – signed a contract with Bladt Industries A/S, a Danish contractor located in Northern Jutland, to build the jacket (legs) and topside (platform). The installation is planned to take place at the end of 2014. The project schedule aims to have first oil early in 2015. After installing the platform, Maersk Oil plans to drill 12 wells during 2015-2017. Each horizontal well will be about six kilometres long.

“It was rewarding to see during the bidding for this project, in an international market, that the most competitive offer was provided by a local Danish company. It shows that the construction industry is able to compete for projects of this type and participate in recovering more oil and gas from the Danish sector,” said Wallace.

The project has been formally approved by the Danish Energy Agency.

DUC is the partnership between A.P. Møller – Mærsk (31.2%), Shell (36.8%), Nordsøfonden (20%) and Chevron (12.0%).

[mappress]
Press Release, April 5, 2013