Third successive well completed at North Sea Sillimanite Unit

Wintershall Noordzee has successfully converted its recent Sillimanite South field discovery well in the Dutch North Sea to a development side track.

This was the third well drilled in sequence after the two Sillimanite Unit field development wells came onstream earlier this year.

Currently the company is finalising hook-up to the D12-B production platform, close to the Anglo-Dutch median line in Dutch territorial waters. From there, the gas will be transported via the Neptune-operated D15-A production platform through the NGT gas transportation system to the mainland.

The unitised Sillimanite gas field extends from block 44/19a on the UK side into blocks D12a and D12b in the Dutch sector. However, Sillimanite South lies entirely within block D12a.

Both Sillimanite and Sillimanite South produce from sandstone Carboniferous reservoirs at a depth of around 3,700 metres (12,139 feet) below sea level.

Other partners in Sillimanite South are EBN and Neptune Energy.

According to Wintershall Noordzee, drilling activities on the Dutch continental shelf have now come to a temporary halt, and new exploration activity in the region is at a record low.

The company has called for changes to the investment regime including improved framework conditions which encourage and support continued exploration, development, and upkeep of infrastructure essential to the Netherlands’ energy transition.

“There is still potential in the Dutch North Sea, but the conditions and circumstances need to change rapidly,” said the company’s managing director Robert Frimpong.

Source: Offshore Magazine