Equinor has reported two commercial discoveries in the North Sea, with oil found in the Troll area and gas and condensate identified in the Sleipner area. Both discoveries were made near established infrastructure used for exports to Europe.
The Byrding C discovery lies about 5 km northwest of the Fram field in the Troll area. Recoverable resources are estimated at 4–8 million barrels of oil. The company said the discovery could be developed through existing or future infrastructure in the area as it works with partners on an area solution.
In the Sleipner area, the Frida Kahlo discovery was drilled from the Sleipner B platform. The well is located northwest of the Sleipner Vest field and is estimated to contain 5–9 million barrels of oil equivalent of gas and condensate. The well is scheduled to be brought on stream as early as April.
The two finds add to a broader run of exploration success in both areas. Since 2018, Equinor has participated in 26 exploration wells in the extended Troll area, including Fram, and 19 of those wells have resulted in discoveries. That gives a discovery rate of more than 70%.
In the Sleipner area, the four most recent exploration wells have all proven gas and condensate, with combined estimated resources of 55–140 million barrels of oil equivalent. Those discoveries are Lofn, Langemann, Sissel and Frida Kahlo, all made over a three-month period. Equinor said Lofn and Langemann together represented its largest operated discovery on the Norwegian continental shelf in 2025.
Sleipner is a mature producing area where the largest volumes have already been recovered, making new discoveries important for sustaining profitable output and extending field life. The company said an exploration programme launched several years ago, supported by new data and improved seismic methods, has strengthened subsurface understanding in both the Sleipner and Troll areas. The use of Ocean Bottom Node seismic, 4D seismic and reprocessing of existing data has contributed to the recent exploration results.
