The Norwegian Ministry of Vitality has expanded the acreage of accessible oil and fuel manufacturing licenses within the Awards in Predefined Areas (APA) 2024 licensing spherical on the Norwegian continental shelf.
On this yr’s licensing spherical, the APA acreage has been expanded with 37 blocks or components of blocks. Three of the extra blocks are within the northwest of the Norwegian Sea and 34 blocks are within the east of the Barents Sea, the ministry mentioned in a information launch.
The realm that’s newly included was opened earlier than 1994. “The realm accommodates acreage with identified performs and exploration historical past, together with earlier exploration wells, relinquished acreage and acreage geographically situated between awarded and relinquished acreage,” the ministry famous.
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Additional, acreage bordering on current predefined acreage is included within the newest spherical. Some components of the brand new areas are included “so as to have the ability to show time-critical sources that may be linked to current and deliberate infrastructure,” the ministry added.
‘We want additional exploration to make new discoveries that in flip pave the way in which for investments to keep up manufacturing,” Minister of Vitality Terje Aasland mentioned. “That is necessary to safeguard jobs, revenue for the group and Europe’s power safety. Entry to new, enticing acreage via the APA system is a pillar of the federal government’s petroleum coverage”.
APA is an annual licensing spherical that covers the mature areas on the Norwegian continental shelf. After greater than 50 years of exploration exercise, the APA rounds presently cowl a lot of the space that has been opened and is on the market on the Norwegian continental shelf.
In accordance with the discharge, the deadline to use for APA 2024 is 12 midday on September 3. The intention is to award the brand new manufacturing licenses for the newly introduced areas firstly of 2025.
The Ministry of Vitality mentioned it acquired a complete of 29 session responses from firms, organizations, authorities businesses, the Sami Parliament and different ministries. The session statements have been assessed and kind a part of the decision-making foundation for APA 2024.
The annual APA licensing rounds have been launched in 2003, occurring yearly and inside a predefined space. Over time, the APA space is expanded, primarily based on skilled assessments of the areas’ maturity, in addition to the necessity for gradual exploration and utilization of time-critical sources. At present, the APA space covers a lot of the obtainable exploration areas on the Norwegian Continental Shelf.
A manufacturing license offers the unique proper to exploration, drilling, and extraction of petroleum throughout the geographical space of the license. On the idea of the functions acquired, a manufacturing license is awarded to a bunch of firms on the idea of goal, non-discriminatory, and pre-announced standards. The Ministry of Vitality designates one operator for every manufacturing license.
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