The state-owned Norwegian energy company Equinor has reported that its oil production in the third quarter of this year increased by 13% compared to the same period last year.
Driving much of the increase was the second phase of development for the Johan Sverdrup field, which came online at the end of last year, taking the overall capacity to 755,000 barrels per day (bpd) of medium-sour crude.
About a quarter of all crude produced in the North Sea comes from this field. Equinor said that the field has:
“…operated at plateau with high, efficient production during the third quarter, continuing to be the primary driver for the increase in [Norwegian] liquid production in the third quarter and year to date, offsetting the effects of divestments in Martin Linge and Ekofisk in the third quarter of 2022.”
Equinor also saw increased production elsewhere in the world, such as the start of production at the Gulf of Mexico’s Vito field, which is operated by energy and lubricant giant Shell. The company also gained some production capacity by acquiring Suncor’s UK assets, while the Brazilian Peregrino offshore oil field also saw improvements in production.
Despite strong growth in oil production, the company revised down its predicted growth for total hydrocarbons production this year from 3% to 1.5%. This is due to maintenance overruns at Norwegian gas fields, contributing to a 13% drop in its global production of natural gas.
Anders Opedal, Equinor’s CEO, also pointed to the recent startup of the UK’s Dogger Bank wind farm, which is currently the largest windfarm in the world.
