Norway Will “Scrape the Bottom of the Barrel” in the North Sea
The first project since the COVID-19 era is being implemented on the Norwegian shelf of the North Sea.
A new oil and natural gas field in the North Sea called Bestla will begin to be developed in the first half of 2027. The caveat is that the Bestla project, which contains approximately 24 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalent, will be linked to the operating Brahe offshore platform. Mining at the latter began in 1993. Joint production at the two sites will help improve efficiency and reduce emissions, the Norwegian Ministry of Energy said.
The Bestla project will be managed by the Norwegian private company Okea ASA, the development cost is estimated at $570 million. This is the first project approved by the Norwegian Ministry of Energy in 2024. Previously, applications for new projects were received only in 2022, when companies plan to develop energy resources on the Norwegian shelf with the help of “Covid” industry subsidies.
“It is important that companies continue to develop new projects and contribute to laying the foundation for long-term offshore oil and gas activities,” said the country’s Energy Minister Terje Åsland.
