Merger creates StatoilHydro Oil spill from Statfjord A

Norwegian Statfjord gas to the UK

Norwegian Petroleum Museum

The extension of production from Statfjord through the late life project created a need to enter into new sales agreements for gas from the field. Since the 20-year sales contract with a European consortium for Norway’s share of the Statfjord gas expired in 2005, the Norwegian licensees were free to choose future buyers. The British needed more gas, not least after the Anglo-Norwegian Frigg field had ceased production, and Statoil reached a sales deal with BP in 2002. This called for gas deliveries to begin on 1 October 2005, with supplies from Statfjord as part of the package.

— The Statfjord field. Illustration: Jan Ulriksen

The Tampen Link pipeline was laid by Castoro Sei, a laybarge owned by Saipem UK, in order to transmit the Norwegian gas to Britain. Running for 23 kilometres, this 32-inch-diameter line was tied into the UK’s Far North Liquids and Associated Gas System (Flags) and had a daily capacity of 25 million standard cubic metres.
The Tampen Link operatorship was transferred from Statoil to Gassco when the line became part of Gassled’s integrated network on 1 September 2007. It was ready for operation on 12 October.

Flags runs from Britain’s Brent field to St Fergus in Scotland, and the tie-in of Tampen Link meant an expansion in Norwegian gas export capacity to the UK.
Necessary modifications on Statfjord also tied the new pipeline together with existing systems on the field, such as Gullfaks gas export and the Gassled pipelines. Gas from the British share of Statfjord continued to be piped to the UK via a spur to the Northern Leg Gas Pipeline (NLGP) and Flags. Ceasing to export Statfjord gas via the Kårstø plant north of Stavanger liberated processing capacity at this facility, allowing it to accept more gas from the Norwegian Sea instead.

Sources:
Gassco website.

Merger creates StatoilHydro Oil spill from Statfjord A

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Published November 26, 2019 • Updated January 16, 2020