A total of 6 exploration and appraisal wells were completed by ORLEN Upstream Norway in 2024, 4 more than the previous year. As a result, the company discovered or confirmed oil, gas and condensate reserves estimated at 66-129 million boe, including 11.0-22.3 million boe net to ORLEN. One of the highlights of the company’s exploration activity in 2024 is Cerisa, the third largest discovery on the Norwegian Continental Shelf this year.
ORLEN Upstream Norway has just completed appraisal drilling at the Sabina discovery, which has confirmed gas and condensate reserves of between 17 and 39 million barrels of oil equivalent. The discovery is located in license PL211CS in the Norwegian Sea, approximately 270 km north of Kristiansund. ORLEN Upstream Norway, together with its license partners: Harbour Energy, Aker BP and Petoro, successfully drilled a 4111 meter appraisal well confirming reserves, of which ORLEN has between 2.0 and 4.7 million boe.
Earlier this year, the company drilled an appraisal well in the Adriana discovery, which is located in shallower geological structures in the same license. This drilling was also successful and confirmed natural gas and condensate resources of 28-43 million boe, including 3.3-5.1 million boe net to ORLEN.
- The success of appraisal wells on the Adriana and Sabina discoveries strengthens ORLEN's position on the Norwegian Continental Shelf, which is one of our key upstream markets. Thanks to a stable regulatory environment, good cooperation with license partners and continuously developed know-how, we are able to leverage our presence on the Shelf to effectively build the value of ORLEN Group - said Ireneusz Fafara, President of the Management Board of ORLEN.
Although decisions on how to develop Adriana and Sabina are yet to be made, the partners are considering integration of both discoveries with the infrastructure of the Skarv area. This is one of ORLEN's production hubs on the Norwegian Continental Shelf, where it already has several fields in production and is preparing to launch more.
- Near-field exploration is an important part of ORLEN Group's strategy on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. It allows us to leverage our knowledge of the geology of the given area to increase the chance of discovery. Integrating new reserves with already existing infrastructure make it possible to accelerate production start-up while reducing investment costs - said Wieslaw Prugar, ORLEN Management Board Member for Upstream.
ORLEN's exploration strategy in Norway proved its effectiveness with the discovery of Trell Nord earlier this year, which has already been put into production as a part of the Tyrving development. The latter, owned by ORLEN, Petoro and Aker BP, came on stream in September 2024. Such a quick production launch as in the case of Trell Nord is not standard. Tyrving itself had to wait much longer to be developed - it was discovered in 1973.
Another exploration success for ORLEN Upstream Norway in 2024 is the Cerisa discovery, which may provide the company with additional 5.4-11.7 million boe of oil and gas. Its total reserves are estimated at 18-39 million boe, making it the third largest discovery on the Norwegian Continental Shelf this year (as of 9 December). Cerisa is located in the license PL636, in which ORLEN Upstream Norway holds a 30 per cent interest and the remainder is held by Vår Energi, INPEX Idemitsu Norge and Sval Energi. The discovery location is just 5 km from the Duva field, in which ORLEN Group also has a 30 per cent interest. Integrating Cerisa with Duva production infrastructure will not only reduce costs and development time, but also extend the life of the field and increase the utilization of its resources, providing ORLEN with operational and financial upside.
Next year, ORLEN Upstream Norway plans to drill 7 exploration and appraisal wells. The work will be carried out, among others, within the Skarv and Sleipner production hubs and in the Yggdrasil area.