Equinor’s oil output rises 4% on year in Q1 with Norway, overseas growth

Norway’s state-controlled Equinor increased its oil production by 4% on the year to 1.04 million b/d in the first quarter, boosted by strong performance at the Johan Sverdrup field and assets offshore the UK, US and Angola, it said April 25.

The company’s Norwegian oil production rose 1% to 648,000 b/d, supported by Sverdrup and the startup of the Breidablikk heavy oil field in October 2023, it said. Partner Aker BP earlier indicated an average Q1 production level at Sverdrup of 750,000 b/d, despite two weeks of planned maintenance in February. Breidablikk reached its “plateau” production rate — thought to be 55,000-60,000 b/d — during the first quarter, Equinor’s partner at that field, Var Energi, said April 23.

Equinor also highlighted production ramp ups at two other Norwegian fields, Njord and Hyme. The Njord field, which loads a light, sweet crude directly onto shuttle tankers, was brought back on stream in late-2022 after a six-year hiatus stemming from structural issues with the production facility, but continued to experience difficulties including periodic shutdowns after the restart, according to Var Energi. Hyme is a tie-back to Njord that was brought back on stream in April 2023.

Equinor’s overseas oil production rose 8% on the year in the first quarter to 388,000 b/d, with increases in both its International and US divisions. Production was boosted by the June 2023 acquisition of a 29.89% stake in the UK Buzzard field, operated by China’s CNOOC, part of a purchase of the UK business of Canada’s Suncor that boosted the Norwegian company’s stake in the Rosebank oil project.

In the US, Equinor got a boost from the February 2023 startup of the Shell-operated Vito field in the Gulf of Mexico, while new wells in Angola and Argentina also contributed to growth, it said.

On the downside, Equinor noted “temporary operational issues relating to an asset in Brazil” — which it did not detail — as well as reduced “entitlement barrels” under overseas production sharing contracts, a result of fewer “cost recovery” barrels and higher oil prices. It also noted natural decline at “certain mature assets” in the Gulf of Mexico.

Equinor reiterated expectations its overall oil and gas output globally will remain stable in 2024 compared with 2023 levels.

The Platts Dated Brent benchmark was assessed at $88.90/b on April 24, up 17 cents on the day, while Sverdrup was assessed at a 67 cent discount to Dated Brent, S&P Global Commodity Insights data showed.
Source: Platts