Equinor Sanctions Further Development of Åsgard Field. Selects Aker Solutions for the Job

Norwegian oil company Equinor has with its partners decided to further develop the Asgard field in the Norwegian Sea, with an investment estimated at just under NOK 1.4 billion ($164,27 million).

Equinor said the investment would see the implementation of the Åsgard B low-pressure project with a contract related to the modification of the Asgard B platform to handle increased production awarded to Aker Solutions.

The selected concept is a modification of the platform to reduce inlet pressure by replacing the reinjection compressors and rebuilding parts of the processing facility.

The floating production platform offshore Norway is connected to subsea installations at several nearby gas and condensate fields. The modifications will enable increased production from the Smørbukk reservoir.

Geir Tungesvik, Equinor’s senior vice president for projects said: “We’re pleased that the Åsgard owners have given their go-ahead for the low-pressure project. The project will increase production from the current Smørbukk wells and contribute to achieving planned production from the field. We’re also awarding a contract to Aker Solutions which will provide valuable activity and help maintain jobs in a difficult time.” 

The Åsgard field in the Norwegian Sea started producing in 1999 and the transition to low-pressure production is important to secure improved recovery from the field. 

“We can still produce 400-500 million barrels of oil equivalent from the field. This means value creation in the order of NOK 150 – 200 billion. The current recovery rate for the field is almost 50 percent, but our ambition is to extract 60 percent of the hydrocarbons in the reservoirs before the field will have to be shut down,” says Randi Hugdahl, vice president for Åsgard operations. 

A FEED contract (front-end engineering and design) was awarded to Aker Solutions in December 2019 for modification work on Åsgard B in connection with the low-pressure project. 

The contract has now been expanded into an EPCI contract (engineering, procurement, construction, and installation). The EPCI contract is valued at around NOK 800 million (~USD 94 million) and will represent about 415 work-years and distributed over four years for the supplier. 

The scope will include installation of systems to accommodate production with both high and low pressure, replacement of reinjection compressors as well as other modifications.

The work is expected to require around 415 man-years for Aker Solutions. Including ripple effects to personnel working with suppliers and in other sectors, it is estimated that the project will involve more than 1,600 jobs. The prefabrication for new systems to be installed at Åsgard B will involve 45 man-years at Aker Solutions’ yard in Egersund. For Aker Solutions’ office in Trondheim, the engineering, procurement and project management will engage around 240 man-years, primarily for local employees. Aker Solutions’ work offshore to install the new systems will involve around 130 man-years.

The work will start immediately and is planned to continue through 2024. 

Gas from Åsgard is piped through Åsgard Transport to Kårstø, north of Stavanger.  Overall, the installations at Åsgard have delivered more than 2.8 billion barrels of oil equivalent, with a gross value of more than NOK 1,000 billion, Equinor said.

Planned start-up of low-pressure production is in 2023.

Partners in the Åsgard licence are: Equinor (operator) 34.57%, Petoro AS 35.69%, Vår Energi AS 22.06%, Total E&P Norge AS 7.68%.