Equinor and its partners in the Åsgard and Mikkel licences have started the second phase of subsea compression in the Norwegian Sea.
The project is designed to maintain production by increasing pressure in the pipelines between the wells and the Åsgard B platform.
The first plan for development and operation (PDO) of Åsgard was approved in 1996. Production from the field began with Åsgard A in 1999 and Åsgard B in 2000. In 2012, authorities approved the PDO for subsea compression, and the first phase came on stream in 2015. It marked the world’s first gas compression facility on the seabed.
Authorities anticipated a long-term need for increased pressure to compensate for the natural decline in the reservoirs. The first compressor module in phase two was replaced in 2023, and the second and final module has now been installed at a depth of 270 metres.
“The technology allows us to recover more gas from producing fields. Good resource utilisation is important to maintain stable production on the Norwegian continental shelf,” said Trond Bokn, Equinor’s Senior Vice President for Project Development.
“The compressor system has produced stably for ten years with almost 100 per cent uptime. So far, it has contributed to value creation from the field of about NOK175 billion ($16 billion),” added Randi Hugdahl, Vice President for Exploration and Production for Åsgard and Kristin.
Equinor estimates that the combined effect of both phases will increase recovery from the Mikkel and Midgard fields to 90 per cent, corresponding to an additional 306 million barrels of oil equivalent.
The licence partners in Åsgard are Equinor, Petoro, Vår Energi, and TotalEnergies, while the Mikkel licence is held by Equinor, Vår Energi, and Repsol.
