Fram

Fram Field, Norwegian North Sea

Location and Geology

• The Fram oil and gas field is located in block 35/11 of production licence 090 (PL090) in the northern region of the Norwegian North Sea, approximately 20km north of the Troll field, at a water depth of 350 meters.
• The hydrocarbons are contained in turbidite sandstones and shallow marine sandstones of the Jurassic-age Draupner and Sognefjord formations, as well as the middle Jurassic-age Etive formation. The reservoir is located at a depth of 2,300-2,500 meters in various isolated, rotated fault blocks.

Ownership and Operation

• The field is jointly owned by Equinor (45%), ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Norway (25%), Neptune Energy (15%), and Idemitsu Petroleum Norge (15%). Equinor is the operator.

Development History

• The field was discovered in 1990 by the 35/11-4 discovery well.
• The development of the Fram West field was approved by the Norwegian Government in March 2001, and production began in October 2003.
• The development of the Fram East field was approved in April 2005, with production starting in October 2006.
• Both fields were developed using two subsea templates, each with four wells, tied back to the Troll C platform.

Production and Reserves

• The field's total recoverable reserves are estimated to be 150 million barrels of oil, 8.4 billion cubic meters of gas, and 100,000 tons of natural gas liquids (NGL).
• Gas extracted from the field is re-injected into the Fram West reservoir as pressure support, while water produced from the Troll C platform is used for pressure support at the Fram East field. Oil is sent to the Mongstad refinery via the Troll oil pipeline II, and gas is sent to the Troll A facility for processing before being transported to the Kollsnes terminal.

Extension Project

• In November 2017, the development partners announced a Nkr1bn ($122.6m) extension project to increase oil and gas production from the field.
• The project involves the installation of a new gas module at the Troll C platform and the drilling of three new wells. This is expected to increase reserves by 70% and extend the field's life until 2030.

Fram Gas and Condensate Field, UK North Sea

Location and Geology

• The Fram gas and condensate field is located in blocks 29/3c and 29/8a of production licence 012 (PL012) and blocks 29/4c and 29/9c of production licence 1664 (PL1664) in the central North Sea, UK. It lies approximately 221km east of Aberdeen and 50km west of the UK and Norway median line, in 100 meters of water.
• The field was discovered in 1969 by the 29/3-1 exploration well and features an oil rim with a gas cap inside a Palaeocene age Forties reservoir in a four-way dip closure around a salt diapir structure.

Ownership and Operation

• The field is being developed by a joint venture between Shell UK (32% equity) and Esso Exploration and Production UK (68% equity). Shell UK is the operator.

Development History

• The development of the field was initially considered unfeasible due to the complex reservoir structure and limited hydrocarbon volumes. However, after a series of 3D seismic surveys and appraisal wells between 2007 and 2009, the field's development became viable.
• The final investment decision (FID) was taken in June 2018, and the first production from the field occurred in 2020.

Production and Reserves

• The field is estimated to hold around 390 million barrels of hydrocarbons in place. It is expected to produce about 41 million standard cubic feet of gas per day and 5,300 barrels of condensate per day, totaling 12,400 barrels of oil equivalent per day at peak production.
• The field's life is expected to be approximately seven years and has increased the UK’s daily oil production by 2%.

Development Plan

• The field development involved drilling two new horizontal wells, G3 and G5, using a semi-submersible drilling rig.
• Hydrocarbons produced from the site are sent via a new 10in/16in surface-laid pipe-in-pipe production flowline to the existing Starling subsea manifold.

In summary, the Fram oil and gas projects involve two distinct fields with different locations, geologies, and development histories, each contributing to the oil and gas production in their respective regions.