**Updated on Nov. 28 – NCS Exploration Drilling Updates – Nov. 27, 2025👏 Since my last update, 3 new wells have started drilling and 5 wells have concluded drilling👏 Currently, a total of five (5) exploration wells are being drilled on the NCS👏. Details..⤵️
– Well 6507/8-12 S: Wildcat well by Equinor in the Norwegian Sea (PL 124B). Spud date- 17 Nov by COSL Innovator rig. Prospect name – “Othello South”. Likely targets: Early – Middle Jurassic reservoirs. Partners- Petoro, ConocoPhillips, Vår Energi👏
– Well 7122/8-3 A: Appraisal well by Vår Energi for the delineation of Zagato Sør discovery in the Barents Sea (PL-229). Spud date – Nov. 22 by COSL Prospector rig. Likely targets: M-Triassic Kobbe Formation and Early Jurassic Tubåen Formation reservoirs. Partner – Equinor👏
– Well 35/8-8 A: Appraisal well for recently completed “Camilla Nord” wildcat well by Harbour Energy Norge AS in the Northern North Sea (PL 248 LS). Spud date- Nov. 23 by Transocean Norge. Likely targets – Late Jurassic Heather Formation / Early Jurassic Cook FM, Statfjord FM reservoirs. Partner – Petoro AS👏
– Well 15/5-8 A: Ongoing wildcat well by Equinor in the North Sea (PL 1140). Spud date- Oct. 1 by Deepsea Atlantic. Prospect name – “Lofn/Langemann”. Likely targets – Late to Middle Jurassic reservoirs. Partner – AkerBP👏
– Well 6407/1-B-2 H: Ongoing wildcat well by Equinor in the Norwegian Sea (PL 1121). Spud date- 16 Sept by Transocean Encourage rig. Prospect name – “Tyrihans Øst”. Likely targets: Early – Middle Jurassic reservoirs. Partners- Vår Energi, DNO Norge👏
➡️ Drilling Results –
– Well 2/6-8 S & ST2: DNO Norge AS has concluded the drilling of Page prospect in the Central Graben (PL 1086). The well was dry ..but hydrocarbon shows were found in the targeted Borr sandstones interval.
– Well 30/11-16 S: AkerBP has concluded the drilling of Natrudstilen prospect in the North Sea (PL 873). The well which targeted the Middle Jurassic Brent Group was dry… but hydrocarbon shows were found in shallow Cretaceous intervals.
– Well 34/6-9 S: Equinor has concluded the drilling of Avbitertang prospect in the Northern North Sea (PL 554). The well which targeted the Early Jurassic Cook Fm was dry.
– Well 35/8-8 S: Harbour Energy Norge AS has concluded the drilling of Camilla Nord prospect in the Northern North Sea(PL 248 LS). Currently awaiting well results, although an appraisal has already begun👏
– Well 7122/8-4 S: Successful appraisal by Vår Energi to delineate the recent Zagato discovery in the Barents Sea (PL-229). Results indicate that Zagato could be as big as 64 mmboe👏
– Well 7122/7-8 S: Vår Energi has concluded the drilling of “Goliat Nord” prospect in the Barents Sea (PL-229). Currently waiting for the well results👏
– Well 15/5-8 S: Equinor has concluded drilling for the first of the two wildcats in PL 1140 in the North Sea. Prospect name – “Lofn/Langemann”. Currently waiting for the well results👏
➡️ Comments:
– Well 2/6-8 S & ST2: Although “Page” prospect turned out to be dry, the targeted play is already proven and the prospectivity is regional, so I’ll be looking forward to the next prospect to be drilled in this play👏… identifying areas of well developed sand fairways will be key for upcoming wells👏
– Well 34/6-9 S: “Avbitertang” prospect joins the long list of recent, dry Jurassic wells in the Northern part of the Northern North Sea. Targeting the Jurassic has become increasingly tough in the NNS-North”. With the exception of Fram area wells, most of the other wells have come up dry (in the last 2-3 years). Notably, these dry wells were drilled in different structural settings and targeted a variety of structural traps. Perhaps, a better understanding of the migration story/timing, types of traps (protected or not), and fault reactivation / fault movement history is needed. Perhaps, a different exploration strategy / focus is needed for the NNS-North area. Stay tuned for more on this in my upcoming blog post👏
– Long-Term Exploration Plan: It’s great to read about Equinor’s recently announced plan to drill 250 exploration wells on the NCS in the next 10 years. This is a great show of long-term commitment to exploration, and the future of the NCS👏 …’definitely a great example by Equinor👏 ..Hopefully, a good percentage of the planned “250 wells” will test frontier-type / high-impact prospects i.e., wells that can add large volumes, or wells with potential to open up new plays or new areas of the NCS.
– .Current YTD technical success rate for 2025 exploration drilling is around 44% (34 wildcats, 15 discoveries, 19 dry holes). The rate goes up to 55% if appraisal wells are included 👏
➡️ As always, contact me for highgraded play areas, prospect reviews, identified leads, farm-ins, and well predictions👏… I’m also available for exploration projects to help fulfil your workprogram commitments – consulting@ytfexploration.com👏
Tags: #NCS, #Exploration, #Drilling, #Updates, #NorthSea, #BarentsSea, #NorwegianSea
➡️ Featured Image: Deepsea Bollsta Rig (source – Odfjell Drilling)
