Awards in the 25th Licensing Round

— The 25th licensing round and the annual APA rounds facilitate exploration and activity on the Norwegian shelf. This is important for employment and value creation in the Norwegian oil and gas industry. The allocations are in line with the goals we presented in the White Paper Energy for Work. They are also an important part of the framework conditions for the companies on the Norwegian shelf, says Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Tina Bru.

The 25th licensing round was announced on November 19, 2020. The application deadline was February 23, 2021. Companies could apply for licenses in nine different areas; eight in the Barents Sea and one in the Norwegian Sea. After the application deadline, the authorities assessed the applications and negotiated with the relevant companies about possible areas and a binding work program.

 

Background

Areas that are open and accessible for petroleum activities can be announced in licensing rounds. The framework for conducting licensing rounds is the same for numbered rounds and APA rounds (Awards in predefined Areas). The majority of available area is covered by the APA rounds. These rounds include area in the best-known exploration areas and take place annually.

As exploration activity has been going on for several decades, the best-known exploration areas now include most of the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and a large part of the southern Barents Sea. Knowledge of the geology in such areas is more limited, and the uncertainty associated with making discoveries is typically greater than in more mature areas on the shelf.

 

The following companies were offered shares (shares/operatorship):

• A/S Norske Shell (1/0)
• Equinor Energy AS (2/2)
• Idemitsu Petroleum Norge AS (1/0)
• INEOS E&P Norge AS (1/1)
• Lundin Energy Norway AS (2/0)
• OMV (Norway) AS (1/0)
• Vår Energi AS (1/1)

Map

Award overview with work-programme

 

Norwegian Petroleum Directorate: All you need to know about the 25th licensing round.