The plan for development and operation for the second phase of the Equinor-operated giant Johan Sverdrup oil development in the North Sea, offshore Norway, is set to be delivered in August.

    This is according to Alex Schneiter, CEO of Lundin Petroleum – a partner in the project – who delivered the news as part of his quarterly report comments on Tuesday.

    Schneiter said the Phase 1 of the field development 160 kilometers west of Stavanger was 75 percent completed, with two platforms installed on the field. First oil from the first phase – sanctioned in 2015 – is on track for late 2019.

    Commenting on the installation progress, Schneiter said: “The drilling platform, installed last month, is among the largest modules to have ever been installed in one go, taking only two days from sail away to installation. This is a great achievement not only for the Johan Sverdrup project but for the industry as a whole.

    “The remaining two steel jackets are scheduled for installation in August and the PDO for Phase 2 will be submitted before September,” the CEO said.

    Johan Sverdrup Phase 2 will involve the installation of an additional processing platform bridge linked to the Phase 1 field center and additional subsea facilities to allow the tie-in of additional wells to access the Avaldsnes, Kvitsøy, and Geitungen satellite areas of the field.

28 new wells. First oil in 2022

    According to Lundin, 28 new wells are planned to be drilled in connection with the Phase 2 development. These additional facilities will take the full field gross plateau production level to 660 Mbopd.

    The cost for Phase 2 is estimated below NOK 45 billion (nominal), which represents approximately a 50 percent reduction compared to the original estimate in the PDO for Phase 1, due to a combination of market conditions and optimization of the Phase 2 facilities.

    Production from the second phase is scheduled to begin in 2022.

    Letters of intent have been awarded to Aibel for an engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract for the Phase 2 process platform topsides and to a joint venture of Aker Solutions and Kvaerner for an EPC contract for modifications to the Phase 1 field center to accommodate Phase 2.

    Full field breakeven oil price is estimated at below $20 per barrel. Daily production during the first phase estimated at 440,000 barrels per day. Peak production estimated to reach 660,000 barrels daily. The field will be operated by electrical power generated onshore.