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OGV Energy Magazine January 2025 - Europe Energy Review
New discoveries and project start-ups offshore Norway, Britain’s offshore wind supply chain opportunities, and milestones in major renewable energy developments across Europe featured in the European energy market at the end of 2024.
Oil & Gas
The Norwegian government has agreed to buy from private companies the majority of the country’s natural gas export network, the Energy Ministry said in November.
In 2023 the government said it planned to take full ownership of the gas export network, which it considers an asset of national interest and importance.
The government has now reached agreements with Equinor, Shell, CapeOmega, Hav Energy, Silex Gas Norway, Orlen, and ConocoPhillips to buy their stakes in the Gassled, Nyhamna, and Polarled joint ventures. Not all owners in the system agreed to sell—North Sea Gas Infrastructure AS and M Vest Energy AS did not accept the state’s offer for their interests in Nyhamna and Polarled, respectively.
“The objective is still a full State ownership of Nyhamna JV and Polarled JV,” Norway said.
“The State aims to take over the remaining interests in these two joint ventures when the license periods expires or through an agreement prior to this.”
Equinor has signed an agreement to buy Sval Energi’s 11.8-percent share in the Halten East Unit, an ongoing offshore development in the Kristin-Åsgård area in the Norwegian Sea, which raises Equinor’s ownership to 69.5 percent.
The recoverable reserves in Halten East are estimated to be around 100 million barrels of oil equivalents, of which around 60 percent is gas that will be exported to Europe via Kårstø.
Equinor has also launched oil and gas production at Smørbukk North, a satellite to the Åsgard field in the Norwegian Sea, utilising existing Åsgard infrastructure. Thus, Smørbukk North has low development costs and profitable production with low CO2 emissions and also extends the lifespan of Åsgard.
“Now that Smørbukk North is in production, Åsgard's future looks even brighter, characterized by high activity and viable development,” Equinor said.
Equinor has also announced a new oil and gas discovery near the Fram field in the North Sea. The discovery is estimated at between 13 and 28 million barrels of oil equivalent.
Another operator offshore Norway, DNO, confirmed in December that its FalstaffOthello well has opened up a new play in the southern North Sea. Light oil was discovered in Palaeocene sandstones of good reservoir quality with preliminary estimates of gross recoverable resources in the range of 27-57 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMboe) on a P90-P10 basis, with a mean of 41 MMboe.
Together with its partners, DNO is already considering tying back the discovery to existing infrastructure, with the ConocoPhillips Ekofisk hub some 40 kilometres to the west and the Valhall hub operated by Aker BP some 55 kilometres to the southwest.
Equinor has awarded a two-year firm contract to Northern Ocean Wind AS to employ the mobile rig Deepsea Bollsta on the Norwegian continental shelf.
“We have an ambition to maintain our production from the Norwegian continental shelf at a high level towards 2035, supplying the energy that Europe demands,” said Kjetil Hove, executive vice president for Exploration and Production Norway (EPN).
“Our ability to continuously drill new wells is at the heart of this. There is still a large remaining resource potential in our producing fields. We also see attractive exploration opportunities in Norway,” Hove added.
European majors bp, Equinor, Shell, and TotalEnergies have announced a $500 million joint investment commitment, intended to create positive energy access impact for people in key regions over the coming years. The companies’ joint investment is aimed at supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goal 7 (UN SDG7), which aims to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all.
Low-Carbon Energy
A new report by UK Steel has highlighted opportunities for the UK steel industry in offshore wind.
UK Steel commissioned an independent report from LumenEE to identify the total steel needed for the rapid expansion of the UK’s offshore wind sector, out to 2050.
Up to 25 million tonnes of steel will be needed in the next 25 years for offshore wind investment around the coast of Britain, according to the report. This single opportunity alone is worth approximately £21 billion in steel purchases.
“The LumenEE findings on offshore wind alone illustrate what’s at stake: £21 billion in steel purchases that could drive a major upturn in UK production. Without decisive action, we risk losing this opportunity and continuing to fund foreign competitors instead of our own economy,” said UK Steel Director-General, Gareth Stace.
Dan McGrail, CEO of RenewableUK, commented, “If the Government and steel industry carefully invests the £2.5bn steel fund in response to this huge growth area, then the wind industry’s Industrial Growth Plan, UK steel production, fabrication and national supply chains can all fall into step as a huge economic boon for the UK.”
In company and project news, RWE, which is developing the Sofia offshore wind farm, noted that the 1.4 gigawatts (GW) project will not only be one of the UK’s largest operational renewable energy assets but will also create £760 million of value for the UK economy, including £181 million for Yorkshire and Humber and £62 million for the North East. That’s according to an RWE-commissioned study conducted by Wavehill Social and Economic Research.
Sofia will be capable of generating power equivalent to the needs of 1.2 million typical households, while fostering community and economic growth across the region and the wider UK, RWE said.
RWE already operates 10 offshore wind farms across the UK. Including the three Norfolk offshore wind projects from Vattenfall, RWE is developing nine offshore wind projects in the UK, representing a combined potential installed capacity of around 10.5 GW.
Statkraft, Europe’s largest generator of renewable energy, has reached a crucial milestone in the construction of its Thornton Greener Grid Park with the arrival of the first of 620 battery units to be installed on site. The 200-MW two-hour Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project, located to the east of Thornton, in East Yorkshire, represents an investment of £150 million in the UK’s renewable infrastructure, and is the largest battery scheme in Statkraft’s international portfolio.
Associated British Ports (ABP) has completed its Lowestoft Eastern Energy Facility (LEEF) in a £35 million infrastructure project, supported by the Town’s Fund. Lowestoft – the UK’s most easterly port – will play a key role in the Southern North Sea (SNS) energy sector.
Purpose-built to meet the growing demands of the offshore energy industry, LEEF supports operations and maintenance (O&M) activities and construction phase requirements. The infrastructure strengthens Lowestoft’s position as a key hub for offshore wind and energy markets, while creating significant opportunities for regional growth and sustainability, ABP said.
Enilive, an Eni company focused on mobility services and products, has announced a new agreement with EasyJet to supply a number of flights from Milan Malpensa Airport with Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
Enilive and easyJet have also signed a Letter of Intent for a potential additional supply of about 30,000 tonnes of pure Enilive SAF at other Italian airports where the airline operates.
CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) has signed two corporate power purchase agreements (PPAs) with renewable energy firm Voltalia. Under the terms of the deals, CERN will purchase for 15 years the output of two solar power plants with a combined capacity of 26.8 megawatts, currently under development in the south of France. The combined output of these two plants will be equivalent to the consumption of 19,400 inhabitants.
Ocean Winds marked in mid-November the installation of the final wind turbine at the Moray West offshore wind farm on the way to fully commissioning the project.
The 882-MW wind farm is nearing the end of the construction phase and will become fully operational during 2025 in line with the originally projected commercial operations date. When Moray West comes online, Ocean Winds will be the largest offshore wind operator in Scotland, the company said.
Amazon is investing in three new utility-scale wind farms in Greece, the largest renewable energy deal for Amazon in the country to date. These wind farms will help match Amazon’s electricity use in the region with carbon-free energy, while supporting Greece’s goal of transitioning to more renewable electricity sources, the e-commerce giant said.
