StatoilHydro has been granted consent to conduct exploration drilling of well 30/9-22 in the Oseberg area with the semisubmersible drilling rig Polar Pioneer.

Well 30/9-22 is part of production license 104 and has the following geographical coordinates: N 60 degrees 17' 32.38", E 02 degrees 42' 06.46". The water depth at the site is 95 meters.

Start-up is planned for January 2009. The drilling activity is estimated to last 49 days.

Polar Pioneer is a Sonat/Hitachi-designed, semisubmersible drilling facility, built in 1985. The facility was subject to main classification at Westcon in Olen in the autumn of 2004. During the stay at the workshop, a number of upgradings were carried out to bring Polar Pioneer up to the standards of Statoil's technical requirements for drilling facilities operating on the Snohvit field.

The facility is operated by Transocean Offshore North Sea Ltd NUF. It has previously drilled production wells on Snohvit and several exploration wells in the Barents Sea for Statoil, Hydro and Eni.

Polar Pioneer received the Petroleum Safety Authority Norway's Acknowledgement of Compliance in July 2004.

Tags: StatoilHydro, StatoilHydro