New discoveries of oil and gas are crucial to limit the decline in production on the Norwegian continental shelf in the coming years. The Ministry of Energy has today initiated the process for announcing the 26th licensing round on the Norwegian shelf.
'Norway will remain a long-term supplier of oil and gas to Europe, while the Norwegian continental shelf will continue to create values and jobs for our country. To deliver on this commitment, we must make more discoveries - and to make more discoveries, we must explore. That is why today we are launching the process for the 26th licensing round for awarding new production licenses,' says Minister of Energy Terje Aasland.
Today, the Minister of Energy is also formally inaugurating the Johan Castberg field in the Barents Sea.
A large share of the expected remaining oil and gas resources on the continental shelf has yet to be proven. New discoveries through continued exploration - in addition to improved recovery and the development of profitable finds - are essential to limit the expected gradual decline in production from the early 2030s onwards.
The Government will therefore facilitate continued exploration on the continental shelf by holding licensing rounds every year. The annual APA (Awards in Predefined Areas) rounds are the backbone of exploration policy and today cover the majority of opened, available acreage for awarding production licenses. Numbered rounds apply to areas outside the APA area.
'The Labour Party Government has a long-term perspective on the further development of our continental shelf. Europe will need oil and gas for a long time to come. Our goal is to ensure that we can supply oil and gas produced with low emissions for as long as there is a demand. Annual licensing rounds going forward are important to achieve this,' says Aasland.
As part of a broad effort to prove additional oil and gas resources, the Ministry of Energy has today started the process for announcing the 26th licensing round. The Norwegian Offshore Directorate has been tasked with conducting a nomination process among licensees on the continental shelf, allowing them to propose which areas they would like to see announced in the 26th licensing round. All acreage that is open and available for awarding production licenses on the continental shelf and is not part of the APA area may be nominated.
The nomination process is the first step in the work on the 26th licensing round. The companies’ input in the nomination process, together with the Offshore Directorate’s own subsurface assessments, will form the basis for the Directorate’s petroleum-related recommendation to the Ministry on which acreage should be announced in the 26th licensing round.
Source: Ministry of Energy
