OSLO: The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) and Russian petroleum authorities (Federal Subsoil Resources Management Agency, Rosnedra) have entered into an agreement to exchange seismic data from the areas around their joint demarcation line in the Barents Sea.
Rosnedra initiated the data exchange about two years ago. Russian and Norwegian authorities will exchange about the same volume of data. In May, Norway awarded 10 licenses for new exploration areas, which for the first time involved the offshore border zone in the Barents Sea.
Rystad Energy predicts that production in the Barents Sea will grow considerably. The first growth phase will be in 2016/2017 as production at the Goliat field ramps up. The next growth phase will be in the beginning of the next decade with the anticipated startup of Castberg, Wisting and Alta/Gohta.
