The Yggdrasil area
Yggdrasil is located between Alvheim and Oseberg in the North Sea. The area holds several oil and gas fields with gross recoverable resources estimated at around 700 million barrels of oil equivalents, with further exploration and appraisal potential.
Yggdrasil is the biggest ongoing development on the Norwegian Continental Shelf, and through it, a mature area in the North Sea is opened. The area consists of the Hugin, Fulla and Munin licence groups. Aker BP is operator with Equinor and PGNiG Upstream Norway as licence partners. Total investments are projected at NOK 115 billion (2022 real).
The development concept
Extensive new infrastructure is planned for the area. The concept consists of a processing platform with well area and living quarters (Hugin A) that will function as an area hub. Hugin A is planned with low manning levels and is also being developed to be periodically unmanned after a few years of operation.
Munin, to the north of the area, is an unmanned production platform. Hugin A will provide services such as receiving and stabilising oil and treatment of produced water to Munin and will also deliver water for injection to the subsea production facilities. The Frøy field is developed with a normally unmanned wellhead platform (Hugin B) that will be tied back to Hugin A.
Yggdrasil also represents an extensive subsea development with a total of nine templates, pipelines and umbilicals. 55 wells are planned in the area.
Gas will be exported through a shared pipeline from Hugin A via Munin to Statpipe and Kårstø, while oil will be exported through a shared pipeline from Hugin A to the Grane oil pipeline and Stureterminalen. Separate joint ventures have been established for the export pipelines for gas and oil with Equinor as operator.
Yggdrasil will be developed with power supply from shore. Connection to the central grid is in Samnanger in Vestland County. The solution will contribute to very low emissions from the area.
The entire Yggdrasil area will be remotely operated from an integrated operations centre and control room onshore in Stavanger. Trough Yggdrasil the licence partnership is setting a new standard in the way to operate a field, with remotely controlled operations, unmanned production platforms, new technology and data-driven decisions and work processes.
Ripple effects
The Norwegian share of investments in Yggdrasil is approximately 65 per cent, and the project is expected to contribute to 65.000 full-time equivalents in Norway through the Yggdrasil area’s lifetime. Approximately half of this is during the development phase. There will be activity at yards in Egersund, Stavanger, Haugesund, Stord, Verdal and Sandnessjøen, as well as in several hundred suppliers across the country. On top of this, it will generate activity and jobs for suppliers and yards all over the world.
The Ministry of Energy approved the development plans for the Yggdrasil area in June 2023.
