Eldfisk/Ekofisk - Intech

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– Eldfisk is one of the two largest fields in
the Greater Ekofisk Area and has been in
production since 1979.
At 18 March 2011, Aker Solutions
signed an EPC contract with
ConocoPhillips to deliver the
topsides and bridges for the
production platform Eldfisk 2/7 S. The
installation will be the newest addition to the
Greater Ekofisk Area.
At 23 March, Aker Solutions was awarded
the contract for modifications of all the
existing platforms at Eldfisk, as an effect of
the installation of the new 2/7 S.
The new contracts mark the continuation of
Aker Solutions’ 40 year long history as a key
partner in developing this part of the North
Sea.
Eldfisk 2/7 S EPC and modification
The Eldfisk 2/7 S topsides consists of one
combined living quarter and utility module
and one combined process and wellhead
module, with a total weight of 15 500 tons.
In addition, the contract includes the
fabrication of two bridges, a bridge support
module and a flare. The topsides will be
delivered from Aker Solutions’ yard at Stord
early 2014.
Eldfisk is one of the two largest fields in the
Greater Ekofisk Area and has been in
production since 1979. The reservoir lies at
a depth of 2 700 - 2 900 metres beneath the
seabed. Oil and gas from Eldfisk is exported
via pipelines through the Ekofisk Centre.
The 2/7S platform shall work as the new
field centre with the Central Control Room
for the Eldfisk field. To make this possible,
the Eldfisk II modification contract includes
complete replacement of the existing Safety
and Automation Systems on all existing
platforms, involving almost 10000 electrical
signals.
The modification of Eldfisk II comprises
modification on all the existing platforms,
2/7A, 2/7FTP, 2/7E, 2/7B and 2/7D. 2/7A will
be converted to a wellhead platform and
2/7FTP will be converted to a bridge
support for 2/7A.
A history of the future
The Ekofisk discovery in 1969 marked the
beginning of the Norwegian oil adventure.
Production from the field started 15 June
1971, and in the following years, a number
of major discoveries were made. However,
the Ekofisk area is also an important part of
©2011 Aker Solutions. All rights reserved. www.akersolutions.com
the next chapter in the Norwegian oil
adventure.
“When Ekofisk is mentioned in the media
and in public, it is often in a historical
perspective: the field that transformed
Norway into an oil nation, one of the 10
biggest offshore oil fields in the world, has
created some NOK 1 260 billion (2004 value)
in value so far, and has produced almost 20
percent of Norway’s total oil and gas
production in the same period,” said Trond-
Erik Johansen, former managing director of
ConocoPhillips in Norway, to the
ConocoPhillips website in 2005.
“All of this is important and correct. There is
less focus, however, on the fact that, based
on current data, Ekofisk is the field on the
Norwegian continental shelf with most oil
reserves left in the ground. In addition, the
Eldfisk field in the Ekofisk Area is no. 3 on
the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate’s list of
remaining oil reserves. This means that the
Greater Ekofisk Area is key to the future of
Norwegian oil and gas activities!’”
Ekofisk is located in the southern part of the
North Sea, some 280 kilometres southwest
of Stavanger. In addition to the Ekofisk and
Eldfisk fields, the area consists of the Embla
and Tor fields. All four are operated by
ConocoPhillips Norge on behalf of the
Ekofisk Group (PL018). ConocoPhillips'
interest in the field is 35.11 percent. The
area also includes the decommissioned
fields Cod, Edda, West Ekofisk and
Albuskjell. The Ekofisk Area currently
consists of a total of 29 installations.
World class
Three rigs were operating in the Norwegian
sector in the autumn of 1969. Gas had been
found in the British sector, but nothing had
turned up in the Norwegian sector. Hope
was running out.
In 1966, the Ocean Viking semisubmersible
drilling rig was built and equipped at Aker
Mekaniske Verksted in Oslo, a predecessor
of Aker Solutions. She drilled her first well
(16/11-1) for Phillips in the North Sea 14 July
1967. The well was dry. More wells were
drilled, some dry and some with a more
positive response.
At 21 August 1969, Phillips started drilling at
block 2/4 using the Ocean Viking. The bit
soon penetrated a shallow gas pocket. Oil
Eldfisk 2/7 S
and gas gushed up with the mud. In order
to avoid a blowout, the well was completely
cemented. The rig was moved one
kilometre, and once again at 25 October,
the drill bit penetrated an oil reservoir. Bad
weather made the testing difficult. In
November, the rig had to be pulled out, and
most of the crew had to be evacuated. But
later that month, there was a news flash
from Phillips: We’ve made a discovery!
Several more wells were drilled, and more
messages of success came back to
headquarters
On 7 December, the testing could continue.
There was growing belief that the discovery
was commercial, and this was confirmed by
the Norwegian authorities on Christmas Eve
1969. The discovery was called Ekofisk. It
was not only the first discovery in the
Norwegian sector, but it would also prove
to be the largest oil and gas discovery in
the history of the North Sea, with a