Wintershall Noordzee BV has started producing natural gas from the second production well at the Sillimanite Field offshore the Netherlands in the North Sea, the company said June 15.

Gas from the well, which is on the Netherlands-U.K. maritime border, will be transported via a new 12-km long pipeline connecting the B platform to the Neptune-operated production platform in Dutch waters. Gas will then move through the Noordgastransport BV gas transportation to shore, the company said.

Wintershall Noordzee, a joint venture of Wintershall Dea and Gazprom EP, began drilling the well in February.

“Nobody could have foreseen the impact the outbreak of COVID-19 would have on our activities. However, by rapidly adapting to a new reality and through perseverance, we have managed to bring this new well on stream without any incidents and within budget and timeframe,” Robert Frimpong, managing director of Wintershall Noordzee, said in a news release.

The company is currently drilling the Sillimanite South exploration well, which it said could add gas to the export pipeline in fourth-quarter 2020.

Offshore