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Non-Commercial Brugdan ‘Helpful in Future Exploration’ |
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2007 Archive
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Written by B. Tyril
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Tuesday, 22 May 2007 |
Results from exploration well 6104/21-1 in License 006, the Brugdan, did not match expectations although drilling through the massive layer of basalt proved surprisingly smooth.
Operated by Statoil, the largest operator in the Faroese area, the well was drilled in waters of 478 meters, reaching a total depth of 4,201m below sea level. The original commitment depth was 3,780m however the Statoil group was permitted to deepen the well to as much as 4,400m but, “technical difficulties” put a halt to the drilling 199m short of target.
“We are obviously disappointed that the drilling did not reveal commercial volumes of hydrocarbons,” Statoil Færøyene vice president Rúni M. Hansen stated, then added: “A positive aspect is that the well has given us useful knowledge about drilling in volcanic sub-basalt rock. That will be helpful in future exploration off the Faroes. The well will give us more precise knowledge of the sub-basalt geology. The coming months will see a detailed examination of samples and logs from the well to ensure that future exploration on the Faroe Shelf will benefit from the new information.”
“The Rosebank discovery is still highly interesting with regard to the Faroes,” Mr Hansen said later, referring to Statoil’s 30-percent share in the Chevron-operated Rosebank/Lochnagar discovery on the UK side of the Faroe-Shetland Channel.
Announcing the Brugdan result back in October 2006, Jarðfeingi — the Faroese Earth and Energy Directorate — said in a statement that the drilling operation through the basalt layers proved successful with “better rates of penetration than expected,” yet the well “did not encounter substantial volumes of hydrocarbons, but did show traces of gas.” According to Jarðfeingi, potential for hydrocarbons is still believed to remain deeper than the achieved total depth. Calling Brugdan “a significant well for future exploration in the Faroes,” Jarðfeingi said the drilling had determined the thickness of the basalt on East Faroe High.
Bjarni Djurholm, Minister of Trade and Industry said: “This is only the fifth exploration well drilled in the Faroese area and the first sub-basalt well, so we must view this outcome in perspective. The initial preparations for the third licensing round have started and benefiting from the new information this work will now continue. I expect that the third licensing round will be launched in the autumn of 2007 as planned.”
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