Aker BP’s Skarv Satellite Project wins approval from Norwegian MPE

The Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy (MPE) has sanctioned Aker BP‘s three Plans for development and operation (PDO) as part of the Skarv Satellite Project (SSP) in the Norwegian Sea.

Aker BP, in collaboration with licence partners PGNiG, Wintershall Dea, and Equinor, submitted the PDOs to the Ministry last December. The development initiatives under the SSP umbrella are gas and condensate discoveries Alve Nord, Idun Nord, and Ørn.

The Skarv Satellite Project will integrate a 4-slot template and two wells, subsea tied back to the Skarv FPSO, located in the northern part of the Norwegian Sea. The venture is expected to unlock total recoverable resources of around 120 million barrels of oil equivalent (mmboe), predominantly gas, with investments approximated at nearly NOK 17 billion ($1.57 billion) in real terms. Production is slated to commence in the third quarter of 2027.

Aker BP to unlock 120mmboe with approved Skarv Satellite Project in Norwegian Sea. Image courtesy of Aker BP.

Remarkably, production from the Skarv Satellite Project will exhibit low incremental CO2 emissions of 4.5 kg/boe. The project execution phase will utilize Aker BP’s alliance model, aiming for a roughly 60 percent Norwegian investment content. Additionally, the initiative intends to engage local suppliers extensively to bolster regional effects. The Skarv Satellite Project is being inaugurated a decade after production started from the Skarv field.

Thomas Øvretveit — Aker BP director of the Skarv area said: “If we are to achieve our goal of creating the oil and gas hub of the future in the Norwegian Sea, we must succeed in developing and putting the Skarv satellite project into production.

“The SSP developments also paves the way for future developments in the area, related to new discoveries, that can contribute to prolonged high production from the Skarv FPSO.”