The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has granted Premier Oil Norge AS a drilling permit for well 3/7-10 S, cf. Section 8 of the Resource Management Regulations.

The well will be drilled from the Mærsk Guardian drilling facility in position 56°27'10.62'' north and 4°04'46.18'' east.

The drilling programme for well 3/7-10 S relates to the drilling of a wildcat well in production licence 539. Premier Oil Norge AS is the operator with an ownership interest of 40 per cent. The other licensees are Suncor Energy Norge AS (20 per cent), DEA Norge AS (12 per cent) and Ithaca Petroleum Norge AS (eight per cent).

Production licence 539 was awarded in APA 2009.

The area in the production license is located in the southern part of the North Sea, in the western part of the border block 3/7. Well 3/7-10 S is the first exploration well in this production licence.

The permit is contingent on the operator securing all other permits and consents required by other authorities before the drilling activity commences.

Tags: Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, Premier Oil