Equinor and Aker BP have launched a strategic collaboration to accelerate the development of tight oil and gas reservoirs on the Norwegian continental shelf, aiming to improve recovery rates, reduce costs and make more discoveries commercially viable.

The companies will focus on technology development, standardisation and knowledge sharing across multiple projects to improve efficiency and speed up the deployment of solutions for challenging reservoirs.

The Norwegian Offshore Directorate estimates that mapped tight reservoirs hold recovery potential of around 2.8 billion barrels of oil equivalent, comparable to the expected recoverable resources of the Johan Sverdrup field.

Tight reservoirs contain oil and gas that flow slowly through the rock, making extraction more difficult and expensive using conventional methods.

Many of the approximately 90 discoveries awaiting development approval on the Norwegian continental shelf are located in such formations.

“By viewing our portfolios in context and developing common solutions, we can reduce costs and develop and qualify technology faster. Together, we can make challenging resources profitable. This benefits all partners and society at large,” says Kjetil Hove, Equinor’s executive vice president for Exploration & Production Norway.

The collaboration will cover prospects, discoveries and projects across the Norwegian continental shelf.

Both companies will contribute opportunities from their respective portfolios and identify areas where joint technology development, standardisation and knowledge sharing can deliver the greatest benefits.

The work will also focus on resource maturation and well-stimulation solutions, with the aim of establishing a sufficient and predictable level of activity to support a competitive supply chain. This includes developing the expertise and supplier capacity required to bring more tight-reservoir discoveries into production.

“Scale is key. By considering the opportunities across both portfolios together, we can create basis for activity, faster learning and lower costs. Together, we can develop solutions that can be applied across multiple projects. We are starting the work immediately,” says Karl Johnny Hersvik, chief executive officer of Aker BP.

The Norwegian Offshore Directorate has encouraged greater industry cooperation to address the technical and commercial challenges associated with tight reservoirs.

The initiative will be managed through a joint governance structure and multidisciplinary working groups involving specialists from both companies.

By combining their project portfolios and technical expertise, Equinor and Aker BP aim to improve recovery from Norway’s substantial tight-reservoir resources and strengthen the economic case for developing discoveries that remain uncommercial under existing approaches. -OGN/TradeArabia News Service