N05-A

N05-A Gas Field Project Profile

Location

The N05-A gas field is located in the Dutch North Sea, approximately 20 km north of the islands of Schiermonnikoog, Borkum, and Rottumerplaat. It is also close to the German maritime area, with the field partly extending into the German North Sea.

Coordinates

The exact coordinates of the N05-A field are:

• Latitude: 53⁰41'03.718
• Longitude: 6⁰21'32.188 (WGS84).

Water Depth

The field is situated in water depths of approximately 25 to 30 meters.

Operator and Partners

The project is operated by ONE-Dyas, a Dutch exploration and production company. The partners in the development include:

• Hansa Hydrocarbons, a subsidiary of UK-based upstream oil and gas firm Discover Exploration.
• Energie Beheer Nederland (EBN), a Dutch state-owned energy company.

Discovery and Geology

The N05-A field was discovered through exploratory drilling in block N05-A in August 2017. The field is located in the Permian Lower Rotliegendes formation, where the sandstones have a net high permeability interval of 24 meters. A drill stem test in the vertical well demonstrated a production rate of 53 million metric cubic feet of gas per day (Mmcfgpd).

Project Details

• Field Development: The N05-A gas field is part of the Gateway to the Ems (Gems) project, a joint initiative involving ONE-Dyas, Discover Exploration, and EBN. This project encompasses the development of smaller gas fields in the Ems estuary area.

• Platform and Infrastructure: The field will be developed with an unmanned platform (Not Normally Manned Installation - NNMI) and an Autonomous Production Location (APL) gas/condensate production process. The platform will have 10 well slots, with 8 wells planned to be drilled initially and 2 spare slots for future use. The platform will include living quarters for planned overnight stays.

• Sustainable Energy: The N05-A platform will be the first in the Dutch offshore industry to run completely on offshore wind power, reducing carbon emissions by 85% over the project life.

Production and Reserves

• Production Rate: The field is expected to have a production rate of up to 4 million normal square meters of natural gas per day. If gas is found in all four adjacent prospects (N05-A Noord, N05-A Sudost, Tanzanite-East, and Diamant), the production rate could increase to up to 6 million normal square meters of natural gas per day.

• Reserves: The recoverable reserves from the N05-A field and adjacent prospects are estimated as follows:

  • N05-A field: up to 7.5 billion normal square meters (Nm³) of natural gas.
  • N05-A North: up to 5.7 billion Nm³.
  • N05-A Sudost: up to 0.8 billion Nm³.
  • Tanzanite-East: up to 1 billion Nm³.
  • Diamant: up to 7.3 billion Nm³ if natural gas is found.

Environmental and Safety Considerations

• Environmental Impact Assessment: An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and environmental impact report (EIR) were submitted to the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Change for public review in April 2021. The assessment includes the potential effects on nature and the environment from drilling wells, installing the platform and pipeline, and production operations.

• Safety Studies: Various safety studies have been conducted, including HAZID, HAZOP, Scenario-Based Risk Assessment, and Major Accident Hazard Identification. A Health, Safety, Environment, and Quality Management System is used by ONE-Dyas to manage all risks throughout the project lifecycle.

Infrastructure and Export

• Pipeline and Export: The extracted gas will be transported to the mainland gas transport network through a pipeline. There are three possible export routes: via a pipeline to Eemshaven, a hot tap in the NGT (Nederlandse Gasunie Transport), or a pipeline to AWG (Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Amsterdam Gas Transport).

Project Timeline

• Discovery: August 2017.
• Final Investment Decision (FID): 2022.
• Production Start: Expected in 2024, with production anticipated to last for 10 to 25 years.

Recent Developments

• The topsides and jacket for the N05-A platform were loaded out and are en route to the field site for installation, keeping the project on track for a 2024 start-up.