BG Group drills dry wells near Knarr field, North Sea

STAVANGER, Norway -- The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has announced that BG Group, operator of production license 373 S, is in the process of completing the drilling of wildcat wells 34/3-4 S and 34/3-4 A. The wells were dry.

The wells were drilled about 5 km east of Knarr field in the northern part of the North Sea.

The purpose of wildcat well 34/3-4 S was to investigate a large channel system in reservoir rocks in the Pleistocene. The well encountered a 250 m thick channel system, about 50 m of which was of very good reservoir quality. Traces of gas were encountered in two thin sandstone layers.

The purpose of well 34/3-4 A was to prove petroleum in lower Jurassic reservoir rocks (the Cook formation). Well 34/3-4 A encountered about 110 m of the Cook formation, 53 m of which was sandstone with good reservoir quality and traces of gas.

Data sampling and aquisition have been carried out in both wells. Both wells are classified as dry.

These are the fifth and sixth exploration wells in production license 373 S. Wells 34/3-4 S and 34/3-4 A were drilled to measured depths of 1,607 m and 4,535 m, respectively, and vertical depths of 1,584 m and 4,321 m below the sea surface, and were terminated in the Hordaland group in the Miocene and the Amundsen formation in the Lower Jurassic. Water depth at the site is 406 m.

The wells will now be permanently plugged and abandoned.

Wells 34/3-4 S and 34/3-4 A were drilled by the Transocean Searcher drilling facility, which will now move on to drill wildcat well 34/3-5 S in the same production license.