Norway’s Ministry of Energy selected Equinor ASA to participate in 27 new production licenses in this year’s Awards in Predefined Areas round. Aker BP ASA was selected for 19 licenses, Vår Energi ASA for 16, and DNO ASA for 13.

The ministry granted 53 licenses to 20 participating companies, with 33 in the North Sea, 19 in the Norwegian Sea and one in the Barents Sea, it said in a release. The annual licensing rounds were introduced in 2003.

Aker will be the operator in 16 of its 19 licenses. Equinor was awarded seven operatorships, Vår five and DNO four.

"The annual award of pre-defined areas is crucial to ensure high export levels over time," said Jez Averty, Equinor's senior vice president for subsurface, the Norwegian Continental Shelf. “Our ambition is to drill around 250 exploration wells by 2035.”

Comments