Production has started from the Aasta Hansteen gas field. The deep-water gas development is located in the northern part of the Norwegian Sea, 300 km from the mainland of Norway and in water depths of 1300 m.
Equinor is the operator of Aasta Hansteen with a 51% stake and OMV (Norge) AS has a 15% interest in the field. The other partners are Wintershall Norge AS and ConocoPhillips Skandinavia with a 24% and a 10% share, respectively.
Aasta Hansteen production will provide reliable gas supply to the European market. The total gross estimated recoverable reserves, including Snefrid North discovery, which has been included in the development, are approximately 324 million boe (55.6 billion m3) and 4.1 million boe of condensate (0.6 million m3). The production will reach a plateau of approximately 20 000 boe/d net to OMV. Gas from Aasta Hansteen will be transported via pipeline to Norway and then further exported to the European market. The condensate will be loaded to shuttle tankers and transported to the market.
The total capital investment in the Aasta Hansteen project is approximately EUR 4 billion (€600 million net to OMV). Aasta Hansteen has the world’s largest SPAR platform, a floating platform with a vertical cylindrical substructure moored to the seabed. The gas is produced from seven wells in three subsea templates. Subsea tiebacks will increase life of field and they will use Aasta Hansteen’s infrastructure. The Snefrid North discovery will extend the plateau production and has an expected start-up towards the end of 2019.