Statfjord

Statfjord Oil Field Profile

Discovery and Operatorship

The Statfjord oil field was discovered in 1974 by Mobil. In 1987, Statoil (now known as Equinor) took over the operatorship of the field on January 1st.

Location

The Statfjord field is located in the North Sea, spanning across blocks 33/9 and 33/12 in the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) and block 211/25 in the UK North Sea, under licences 104 and 293.

Field Development

The field has been developed using three main production platforms: Statfjord A, B, and C. Each platform has a concrete gravity base structure incorporating storage cells.

• Statfjord A:

  • Began production on November 24, 1979.
  • Topside weight: 41,500 tons.
  • Concrete substructure weight: 200,100 tons.
  • Storage volume: 206,000 m³.
  • Total height: 270 metres.
  • Living quarters accommodate: 206 people.

• Statfjord B:

  • Began production on November 5, 1982.
  • Topside weight: 42,500 tons.
  • Concrete substructure weight: 310,500 tons.
  • Storage volume: 302,000 m³.
  • Total height: 271 metres.
  • Living quarters accommodate: 228 people.

• Statfjord C:

  • Began production on June 26, 1985.
  • Topside weight: 50,000 tons.
  • Concrete substructure weight: 290,000 tons.
  • Storage volume: 302,000 m³.
  • Total height: 290 metres.
  • Living quarters accommodate: 345 people.

Satellite Fields

In addition to the main platforms, the Statfjord field includes several satellite fields tied back to the Statfjord C platform:

• Statfjord Nord: Discovered in 1977, located about 22 kilometres north-east of Statfjord C, and developed with three subsea templates.
• Statfjord Øst: Discovered in 1977, began production on September 23, 1994, and lies five kilometres north-east of Statfjord C.
• Sygna: Started production in July 2000, tied back to the Statfjord C platform.

Production and Reserves

• The field has produced approximately 3.7 billion barrels of oil and 60 billion cubic metres of gas in its first 20 years of operation.
• By 2013, overall production had reached 4.7 billion barrels of oil equivalent.
• The original reserves were estimated to be around 9 billion barrels of crude oil.
• The current recovery rate is expected to reach up to 70% for oil and 75% for gas, with ongoing projects aiming to increase recoverable volumes.

Recent Projects and Extensions

• Statfjord Late Life Project: Initiated in 2002 as part of the Tampen 2020 Project, aiming to increase recoverable volumes by 32 billion cubic metres of gas, 25 million barrels of oil, and 60 million barrels of condensate. This project has extended the field's production life until at least 2025 and potentially beyond.
• Statfjord Ost Project: Approved in 2020, this project aims to recover an additional 26 million barrels of oil equivalent from the Statfjord Øst area. The project involves drilling new wells, modifying the Statfjord C platform, and installing a pipeline for gas lift. It started production six months ahead of schedule in 2023.

Ownership

The current licensees in the field include:

• Equinor (formerly Statoil): 44.337%
• ExxonMobil: 21.37%
• Centrica: 34.30%.

Production Capacity and Revenue

• The field has an average production capacity of around 140,000 barrels per day (bpd).
• Over its 25 years of production, the field generated more than NOK 1,000 billion in revenues.
• As of recent updates, loadings of Statfjord crude are expected to average around 51,667 b/d.

Safety and Incidents

• A fire broke out on the Statfjord A platform in February 1978, resulting in five fatalities. Later that year, a helicopter crash occurred, killing eighteen people.
• In December 2007, approximately 25,000 barrels of crude spilled from the Statfjord A platform, marking the second-worst oil spill in Norway.
• Minor incidents, such as a drill pipe falling on the deck of Statfjord C in 2005 and an oil and gas leak in 2013, have also been reported.

Infrastructure and Transport

• The field uses a loading buoy, the world’s largest articulate loading platform (ALP), which was mated to the Statfjord A platform in August 1978.
• Gas from the field is exported through the Statpipe system and the Tampen Link pipeline to the Flags transport system and then to the UK.

Future Plans

Equinor plans to extend production from the Statfjord field until at least 2040 and has postponed the decommissioning of the first of the three main production facilities, Statfjord A, from 2022 to 2027.