Equinor is preparing to assess Sleipner B damages

Equinor, a Norwegian company, said it would survey the damage to its Sleipner B platform in the North Sea on Wednesday. The platform was closed late Monday night after a smoke alarm was raised in an electrical installation.

Equinor, according to a spokesperson for the company, continued to meet its gas supply obligations to Europe on Wednesday by pumping additional gas from other fields.

The spokesperson said that two emergency vessels doused Sleipner in seawater Tuesday, pumping from afar to cool the platform. Plans are underway to send crews onboard to assess the situation.

The Sleipner-B platform is usually unmanned and controlled remotely.

Norway is Europe's biggest supplier of natural gases and oil. It pumps 4 million barrels equivalent to oil per day, from over 90 offshore fields. About half of this is gas.

Gas export system operator Gassco said that the Sleipner gas field's export capacity was reduced from 11.0 million cubic metres per day to just 10.2 mcm. Norway's planned daily exports were 329 mcm. Nora Buli is reporting, Terje Solsvik is editing.

(source: Reuters)