The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) presented a report on petroleum activity in the High North at the Barents Sea conference today.

The Petroleum Activity in the High North report aims to place petroleum activity in the High North into a technological, historical and international context, showing how exploration and production of oil and gas take place under “demanding marine conditions.”

According to the report, these conditions include ice-bound areas as well as areas where rough waves and winds can disrupt exploration and production.

While Norway’s sea areas remain ice-free throughout the year, the climate in Canada, the US, Greenland and Russia causes ice sheets to partly or completely cover these areas year-round.

NPD director general Bente Nyland said: “Ever since the start on the Norwegian Shelf 50 years ago, there has been a stepwise approach to new areas and new fields.

“This approach is founded on technological knowledge and experience both from the Norwegian Shelf and internationally. The Director General’s new report shows that this also applies to the petroleum activity in the High North.

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“We hope the report can contribute in a knowledge-based approach to the debate.”

The report also describes the Snøhvit gas field and the Goliat oil field, currently in production in the Norwegian part of the Barents Sea. The Johan Castberg field, located 100km north of the Snøhvit field, is in development and will start production in 2022.

Several other developments in the Barents Sea have also been highlighted as relevant candidates for development by the NPD, which expects that approximately 65% of the undiscovered resources on the Norwegian Shelf are located in the Barents Sea.

Nyland said: “Significant values have been created from the petroleum activity in the Barents Sea. To date, around 155 exploration wells have been drilled there, and the NPD’s resource report for exploration (2018) revealed that every 1000 kroner invested in exploration in the Barents Sea has yielded 2100 kroner in return.”