– The start of a new era for M Vest Energy

Photo: Minister of Petroleum and Energy Kjell-Børge Freiberg. Photo: OED / Scanpix

M Vest Energy hit jackpot in the Awards in Predefined Areas 2018 (APA 2018) when the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy awarded the Bergen company ownership in four new production licenses.

M Vest Energy was awarded 10 per cent in PL 1019 in the Vøring Basin in the Norwegian Sea, 10 per cent in PL 959B west of Kristiansund and 30 per cent in the neighboring licenses PL 971 and PL 972 (Vette) south of the North Sea. In particular, the latter license is of particular importance for M Vest Energy.

Proven reserves
– Vette was returned to the authorities in 2015 when the oil price had fallen dramatically and remained low over time. Since then, development in the nearby area (Yme) has been decided upon and this changes the evaluation with regard to infrastructure and development costs. Through previous exploration drilling, 50 to 60 million barrels of oil have been proven so far, with potential for significantly increased resources, says CEO Jonny Hesthammer, who is looking forward to embarking on the work to develop the license together with operator Repsol (40%) and Dyas (30%).

Hesthammer himself was present in Sandefjord together with colleague Susanne Sperrevik when Minister of Petroleum and Energy Kjell-Børge Freiberg published the APA 2018 awards during the annual Oil Industry Seminar.

– With this award, we are moving ahead towards becoming a fully integrated exploration and production company, which is our strategy. This is the start of a new era! We are grateful for the opportunity, and together with our outstanding academic colleagues and the partners in the license, we are absolutely convinced that we will make the Vette discovery a positive investment for M Vest Energy together with the Norwegian community, says Director of Business Development and Exploration, Susanne Sperrevik.

Good match
The other licenses offered to the company complement the existing exploration portfolio, where the company has solid expertise. PL 1019 is close to Aasta Hansteen and M Vest Energy has already carried out exploration drilling in the area (PL 528 where gas has been detected in a likely commercial discovery). PL 959B is connected to the promising PL 959 Grågåsen, where a comprehensive work program has been adopted in a large structure.

– These are all exciting licenses that we have worked in depth with over a long time. Now M Vest Energy owns attractive discoveries that are closely linked to existing infrastructure, while at the same time having potentially large resources in unexplored areas. Now work towards developing the licenses to attractive exploration and production units starts, emphasizes Sperrevik and Hesthammer.