Gas sales contract for Statfjord, Gullfaks and Heimdal

Norwegian Petroleum Museum

The gas sales contract between the Norwegian Statfjord licensees and a consortium of buyers in continental Europe for Statfjord, block 34/10 (subsequently Gullfaks) and Heimdal was signed on 1 September 1982.

— Facsimile from STATOIL. 1982 VOL. 4 NO. 1

This deal was a “field depletion” contract, whereby all the reserves in the relevant field or fields are sold.

The buyers comprised the three German companies Ruhrgas, Thyssengas and Brigitt und Elwerat (BEB), Dutch Gasunie, Belgium’s Distrigaz and Gaz de France.

They offered to pay NOK 150 billion in 1982 value for gas from all three fields over their producing life for a 30-year period starting in 1986. This price was characterised as “the best ever achieved”.

The sales negotiations were led on the Norwegian side by Statoil. Its chief executive, Arve Johnsen, had already secured agreements in principle a year earlier.

To learn more, see: Selling the Statfjord gas