Norwegian oil and gas company Statoil ASA (STO) has made an oil discovery of high-impact on the Aldous Major South prospect or PL 265 along with its partners Petoro AS, Det Norske Oljeselskap ASA and Lundin Norway AS.
Well 16/2-8, a 65-meter deep oil column in Jurassic sandstone was drilled by the Transocean Leader. The data obtained on the reservoir substantiates the high quality of the finding.
Initially, volumes are projected between 200 million and 400 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) for this part of the structure in PL 265. An additional upside in the license in both north and south of the discovery is also anticipated by Statoil.
Located west of Lundin’s Avaldsnes discovery (license PL 501), Aldous Major South is situated in license 265. Statoil has a 40% stake and retains the operatorship of the field. Petoro, Det Norske Oljeselskap ASA and Lundin hold 30%, 20% and 10% interests, respectively. Statoil also operates the Grane field located around 35 kilometers south of Aldous Major South.
Well 16/2-8 oil-water has the same characteristics as the Avaldsnes discovery (license PL 501), in which Statoil has a 40% stake. These discoveries could together pave way for a standalone development by Statoil in the North Sea.
Transocean Leader will start drilling the Aldous Major North well, which also has considerable volume potential, after completing work on Aldous Major South. Statoil has secured rig capacity for drilling two appraisal wells in PL 265 next year.
Statoil has a Zacks #3 Rank, which is equivalent to a Hold rating for a period of one to three months. For the longer term, we remain Neutral on the stock. Total S.A. (TOT) and ConocoPhillips (COP) are major competitors of the company.
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