News
03.07.2017 PGNiG starts production of gas and crude oil from Gina Krog field in Norway
Located in the North Sea the Gina Krog field was brought on stream last Friday, at 17:00. PGNiG Upstream Norway is one of the four consortium partners, holding an 8% interest in the licence. The field’s recoverable reserves have been put at 218 million boe, the figure equal to last year’s total output from the Norwegian Continental Shelf.
Located about 30 km off the Norwegian coastline, Gina Krog is one of the five oil and gas fields in that area in which PGNiG holds interests.
‘Launch of production from the Gina Krog field is very good news not only for PGNiG, but for the entire Polish gas industry. High productivity of this licence area will significantly contribute to PGNiG’s production volumes from the Norwegian Continental Shelf in 2017,’ said Piotr Woźniak, President of the Management Board of PGNiG S.A. ‘Starting production from the field is another step towards gradual increasing the volumes of hydrocarbons produced by PGNiG in Norway. We assume that starting from 2022 we will be able to supply approximately 2.5 billion cm3 of gas produced from our own deposits annually to Poland, through a gas link from Norway via Denmark, ,’ added Piotr Woźniak.
Discovered in 1974, Gina Krog was initially considered a small gas accumulation. It was only in 2007 that it turned out to be rich also in large quantities of crude oil. PGNiG Upstream Norway acquired an interest in the field in 2014. The licence operator is Statoil Petroleum AS, with a 58.7% interest. The other consortium members are: Total E&P Norge AS (15%), KUFPEC Norway AS (15%) and Aker BP ASA (3.3%).
One of the key elements of the PGNiG Group Strategy for 2017–2022 is to expand its upstream business outside of Poland. The natural target market for the Group’s expansion plans is Norway, where PGNiG has already gained extensive experience in crude oil and gas production. The Norwegian Continental Shelf) is considered a promising area in terms of hydrocarbon resources. Upstream projects located there typically offer high profitability and low risk profiles. Both existing projects and future investments in the region will create a base for future gas supplies to Poland.
By 2022 the Norwegian, Danish and Polish transmission system operators will construct a gas pipeline system to secure direct gas imports from Norway to Poland. The PGNiG Group is involved in efforts aimed at importing Norwegian gas to Poland through the new infrastructure connection.
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PGNiG commenced its operations in Norway in 2007, with the acquisition of an interest in the Skarv field from ExxonMobil. Production from the project was launched in 2012, and since then it has been an important contributor to the upstream segment’s financial performance. Expected production from PGNiG’s Norwegian assets in 2017 is 571 thousand tonnes of oil equivalent and 0.5 billion cm3 of natural gas.
Currently, PGNiG is involved in 18 licences on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. The Group holds interests in five crude oil and gas fields (Skarv, Vilje, Morvin, Vale and Gina Krog), and its Norwegian reserves are 78 million boe (as at January 1st 2017). The Group’s exploration work is being carried out under nine licences; on two of the licences PGNiG acts as the operator. The Company is planning to take part in upcoming licensing rounds.
