Investing to maintain high gas production at Troll
Equinor and the Troll partners have decided to invest just over NOK 12 billion to further develop the gas infrastructure in the Troll West gas province.
This will accelerate production from the reservoir and thus maintain the current high gas export levels from the Troll and Kollsnes value chain leading up to 2030.
Stage 2 of the Troll Phase 3 project includes eight new wells from two new templates with subsea controls extended from existing templates. A new gas flowline will be laid as a tie-back to the Troll A platform, and the project will also perform modification work on Troll A.The first wells are scheduled to come on stream at the end of 2026.
"This is a highly profitable project that will secure high gas production from the Troll field. The partnership's decision is important in order for us to fully utilise the capacity of existing infrastructure. We've chosen to use solid, familiar suppliers, most of which already have framework agreements with us," says Geir Tungesvik, Equinor's executive vice president, Projects, Drilling & Procurement (PDP).
"It's a clear advantage that several of them have experience from the previous stage of the Troll Phase 3 development. We will build on this to achieve safe and efficient deliveries and implementation," Tungesvik says.
The new infrastructure will accelerate production from the reservoir equivalent to about 55 billion standard cubic metres of gas. At its peak, the annual contribution from the new development will amount to around 7 billion standard cubic metres of gas.
"We have been working alongside our partners, Gassco and the Norwegian authorities to maximise energy deliveries from the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) since 2022. This project will allow Troll and Kollsnes to continue their substantial contributions to the role of the NCS in guaranteeing European energy security in challenging times. The gas from Troll alone meets around 10 % of Europe’s demands,” says Kjetil Hove, executive vice president for Exploration and Production Norway.
The first stage of gas production from the Troll West gas province started in 2021 and included eight wells and a new pipeline to the Troll A platform, as well as a new inlet module. This part of the project helped extend plateau production by 5-7 years. Stage 2 will further extend plateau production by around four years and reduce the production decline over the next 10-12 years.
Plateau production of Troll gas has increased as a result of recent upgrades at the Kollsnes processing plant. Maximum production from Troll used to be 121 million standard cubic metres of gas per day. This has now been increased to 129 million. Production from the new Troll wells will amount to about 20 million standard cubic metres of gas per day.
In accordance with the Petroleum Act, the partnership will now send an announcement to the Ministry of Energy concerning the development.
Contracts in Troll Phase 3, stage 2:
- OneSubsea was awarded the front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract with an option for detailed engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of subsea production systems, including umbilicals. The option has been exercised and the estimated value is around NOK 2 billion. The umbilicals will be manufactured in Moss and structures and manifolds will be assembled in Egersund.
- The pipelaying contract for the 36-inch gas pipeline has been awarded to Allseas.
- Odfjell Drilling and the Deepsea Aberdeen drilling rig have been awarded the drilling contract for the eight production wells on the Troll field in connection with TP3 II. The drilling will start in late 2025, or early 2026, and the estimated contract value is around NOK 1.3 billion, excl. integrated drilling services, index adjustment, and efficiency and fuel reduction incentives.
- Contracts will also be placed for the fabrication and installation of pipeline termination structures, umbilicals, connection pipes, etc., in addition to the installation of the subsea production system. The scope of work has an estimated value of just over NOK 1 billion.
- Aker Solutions was previously awarded a FEED study for modifications to the Troll A platform. Evaluations will be ongoing through the summer to select suppliers for the implementation of detailed engineering, procurement and construction work on the platform. Contract awards are also planned towards the end of the summer.
Facts about Troll
- Partnership: Equinor Energy AS 30.58% (operator), Petoro AS 56%, AS Norske Shell 8.10%, TotalEnergies EP Norge AS 3.69%, ConocoPhillips Skandinavia AS 1.62%.
- Troll is Norway’s largest gas producer, with substantial reserves still underground.
- The annual export volume from Troll corresponds to an estimated 10% of Europe’s gas consumption.
- Annual energy production from the Troll field corresponds to approx. 3 times the annual Norwegian hydropower production.
- The vast resource base has made it necessary to plan the development and production in three phases:
- Phase 1 is the gas in Troll East, which resulted in Troll A, the Kollsnes gas plant and associated infrastructure. The gas is exported to Europe via the Zeepipe pipelines.
- Phase 2 is the oil in Troll West, which resulted in the Troll B and C platforms and associated infrastructure. The oil is sent to the oil terminal at Mongstad.
- Phase 3 involves producing the gas cap overlying the oil column in Troll West, while also continuing the production of oil. The produced gas goes to Troll A and onward in existing infrastructure.
- Phase 3 stage 2 will accelerate gas volumes from Troll West. Eight wells will be drilled from two subsea templates.
- The Troll A platform is electrified, which means that the production has very low CO2 emissions.
- The gas is sent to Kollsnes, where it is treated, dehydrated and compressed before being transported to Europe via the Zeepipe pipelines. Kolsnes is also powered by electricity.
- Gassco is the operator of Kollsnes. Equinor is Technical Service Provider
