The Victoria project is both the most expensive and the most important exploration project on the Norwegian continental shelf this year. It is considered to be the largest undeveloped gas field outside the coast of Norway at present, according to Norwegian newspaper Dagens Næringsliv.
However, the technical difficulties of producing the hard accessible gas create an uncertainty about production profit. The Victoria gas is difficult to produce because of high pressure and high temperature, combined with a complicated geological structure. The high costs of the exploration drilling are also partly due to the expenses connected to the brand new, top modern exploration rig “West Phoenix”.
If the results of the delineation drilling of the well are positive, it will probably result in a new gas field development on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. With a reducing number of new oil and gas fields in production outside Norway over the last years, the results of the Victoria drilling have become even more important for the petroleum industry in Norway.
Shell is testing a nearby field called Gro. Because of the large fields in the area, there have been discussions about building a new gas pipeline to the European marked. However, the plans depend on the size and profitability of the new wells. Therefore the entire industry awaits the test results with anticipation.
