Equinor platform to shut after 43 years

Norwegian oil giant Equinor said Thursday its Statfjord A platform in the North Sea is scheduled to shut down in 2022.

The shutdown will be during the platform's 43rd year of operation, more than doubling the expected lifetime, initially planned to terminate in 1999, thanks to upgrading work carried out over more than four decades.

Since first oil was produced in 1979, the related Statfjord field has produced more than 5 billion barrels of oil and gas, for $172 billion in revenue. The two other platforms on the field are planned to operate until 2025 at the earliest.

Equinor awarded the contract for removal and disposal to Excalibur Marine Contractors, a subsidiary of the Swiss Allseas conglomerate. Norwegian engineering and construction firm Kværner was hired by Excalibur to dismantle and recycle the topside onshore.

The field is operated by Equinor, which holds a 44.34% share. Other partners are U.S. multinational ExxonMobil (21.37%), independent operator Spirit Energy Resources Ltd. (14.53%), and its subsidiary Spirit Energy Norway AS (19.76%).

“The platform has generated enormous values, many jobs and a proud history,” said Hege Flatheim, vice president for Statfjord operations, in a release.

“Shutting down production and removing the installation is part of a platform’s life cycle, and we will make sure that this is done in a safe manner, while taking care of personnel and capabilities in a late life phase,” she added.

Source: Kallanish Energy