OSLO (Reuters) – Efforts to find new oil off Norway are expected to double next year, preliminary company plans show, with activity rising in more mature areas after this year’s disappointing Arctic campaign.
The pressure to deliver is growing as this year’s poor exploration results were partly to blame for a drop in interest in Norway’s latest licensing round
Around 45-50 exploration wells, including wells to delineate previously made discoveries, could be drilled next year on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), up from around 26 wells this year.
“We do not rule out that the number of NCS exploration and appraisal wells may increase by 70-100 percent year-on-year in 2018,” said analyst Teodor Sveen-Nilsen at Sparebank 1 Markets.
Higher oil prices and…