Chrysaor, Baker Hughes Embark on North Sea Drilling Campaign
North Sea oil and gas producer Chrysaor is embarking on a drilling campaign under a three-year partnership with oil services firm Baker Hughes using a Rowan Gorilla VII jack-up rig, Chrysaor said on Friday.
Chrysaor is one of a group of private equity-backed North Sea oil and gas producers that have bought up assets from traditional producers such as Shell and OMV.
Backed by Harbour Energy, an investment vehicle of EIG Global Energy Partners, Chrysaor has stakes in 10 fields and produces around 130,000 barrels per day of oil and gas, making it the largest independent North Sea producer.
Chrysaor's contract with Baker Hughes sees both companies share the "risks and rewards associated with both the operations and reservoir outcomes", Chrysaor said, without providing details.
Baker Hughes has contracted the Rowan rig for 18 months with an option to extend by a further two years. The first well of the campaign will be a side-track Chrysaor's Maria field in the Armada hub northwest of Scotland and is expected to start early next month.
"Our initial Maria drilling campaign is the first phase of the redevelopment plans for our operated fields," Chrysaor Chief Executive Phil Kirk said in a statement.
"With the application of focused capital and expertise we believe that we can increase recovery factors, add to our reserve base and extend the field life of the assets."
The companies did not immediately respond to a request for further details.
Reporting by Shadia Nasralla
