Aker BP has made a gas discovery at the Alpehumle prospect in the North Sea after completing drilling operations on exploration well 36/4-2 and sidetrack 36/4-2 A in production licence 1153.

The discovery is located about 25 km north of the Duva field. Preliminary estimates indicate recoverable resources of 0.15 million to 2.4 million standard cubic metres of oil equivalent, equivalent to around 1 million to 15 million barrels of oil equivalent.

Production licence 1153 was awarded in APA 2021, with 36/4-2 representing the first exploration well in the licence. Aker BP is the operator with a 40% interest, alongside INPEX Idemitsu with 30%, OKEA with 20% and Harbour Energy with 10%.

The 36/4-2 well targeted petroleum in Early Cretaceous reservoir rocks in the Agat Formation. Drilling encountered a 10 m gas column in sandstone layers with very good reservoir quality. The hydrocarbon-water contact was not established.

A sidetrack, 36/4-2 A, was subsequently drilled to obtain more information about the discovery and investigate the hydrocarbon-water contact. The well encountered 4 m of sandstone with very good reservoir quality in the Agat Formation, but the reservoir was water-bearing at this location.

Data acquisition and sampling were carried out in both wells.

Water depth at the drilling site is 255 m. Well 36/4-2 reached a vertical depth of 2,250 m below sea level and ended in basement rock. The 36/4-2 A sidetrack reached 2,320 m below sea level and was terminated in an unidentified formation.

Drilling was carried out with Scarabeo 8, a semi-submersible drilling rig operated by Saipem. The rig can accommodate 140 people and has a maximum drilling depth of 35,000 ft.

The drilling campaign follows an extension of Scarabeo 8’s work with Aker BP. Saipem secured an additional one-year period for the rig, extending its work under the arrangement into 2028.

The PL 1153 partners will assess the discovery’s economic viability and consider whether further delineation is appropriate.