Johan Castberg

Location and Geology

The Johan Castberg oil field is located in the Barents Sea, approximately 100 kilometres north of the Snøhvit field and 150 kilometres northwest of the Goliat field. It is situated in blocks 7219/9 and 7220/4,5,7, at a water depth of 360-390 metres.

Discoveries and Reservoirs

The Johan Castberg project encompasses three oil discoveries:

• Skrugard: Discovered in April 2011.
• Havis: Discovered in January 2012.
• Drivis: Discovered in May 2014. These discoveries are part of production licence PL 532 and are expected to hold recoverable resources in the range of 450-650 million barrels of oil equivalent.

Ownership and Operation

The project is operated by Equinor, with ownership distributed as follows:

• Equinor: 50%
• Vår Energi: 30%
• Petoro: 20%.

Development and Infrastructure

The field development involves several key components:

• FPSO (Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading) Vessel: The FPSO is 313 metres long, 55 metres wide, and 120 metres tall, with a storage capacity of 1.1 million barrels of oil. It is equipped with gas turbine generators, water, gas, and chemical injection modules, and a flare system. The FPSO will accommodate up to 140 workers.
• Subsea System: The development includes 30 wells distributed across 10 subsea templates and two satellite structures. There will be 18 production wells and 12 water and gas injection wells to provide pressure support.
• Pipeline and Onshore Terminal: The produced oil will be transported through a 280-kilometre pipeline to an onshore oil storage facility at Veidnes, outside Honningsvåg in Finnmark. The oil will be stored in two mountain caverns and transferred to crude tankers via a quay.

Production and Capacity

• Production Start: Expected to start in the fourth quarter of 2024.
• Daily Production: Designed for a daily production of 35,000 Sm3 oil equivalents, which is approximately 220,000 barrels per day.
• Peak Production: Expected to peak in 2026.
• Operational Life: The field is expected to produce for 30 years, until around 2049.

Development Process and Costs

• Plan for Development and Operation (PDO): Submitted by Equinor in December 2017 and approved by the Norwegian Government in June 2018.
• Construction and Commissioning: Construction of the topside began in November 2018. The FPSO reached Aker Solutions’ Stord yard in April 2022 for turret and process module installation. Hookup operations started in September 2024.
• Development Cost: Estimated to be approximately NOK 49 billion ($8.01 billion).

Employment and Economic Impact

• Employment: The project is expected to generate employment for approximately 4,800 people during the construction period.

Technological Innovations and Environmental Considerations

• Technological Innovations: The project includes several technological innovations, such as Siemens’ SGT-750 gas turbine for re-injecting gas to pressurize the oil reservoir, and a waste heat recovery unit to prevent ice build-up and heat the HVAC plant or incoming crude.
• Environmental and Logistical Challenges: The project has been re-engineered to address the harsh Barents Sea environment, including short weather windows and challenging logistics. Simulations have been performed to avoid snow accumulation on the FPSO’s superstructure.

Future Development and Exploration

• Additional Discoveries: There are plans to tie in five more discoveries to the Johan Castberg field and to conduct further exploration in the area in the coming years.
• Local Operations: The field will have a supply and helicopter base in Hammerfest and an operating organisation in Harstad.