Vår Energi, in partnership with DNO Norge and Sval Energi, has announced a significant gas and condensate discovery at the Vidsyn prospect in the Norwegian Sea, marking the company’s third commercial discovery in 2025.
The discovery was made by wildcat well 6406/11-2 S within production licence 586, approximately eight kilometres west of Vår Energi’s operated Fenja field.
This licence, awarded in 2011, has now seen eight exploration wells drilled in the area.
Drilled by the Deepsea Yantai rig in about 310 metres of water, the well reached a vertical depth of 3,857 metres below sea level and encountered a gas/condensate column of around 110 metres in the Ile Formation, within a 145-metre thick sandstone reservoir with moderate-to-good properties.
Preliminary estimates put recoverable reserves between 25 and 40 million barrels of oil equivalent (mboe), with potential gross resources up to 100 mboe.
The discovery is positioned updip of a previous exploration well and close to the Fenja subsea infrastructure, facilitating plans for accelerated development through existing facilities.
Vår Energi’s SVP of Exploration, Luca Dragonetti, emphasised the project’s strategic value, stating: “Vidsyn is an exciting discovery unlocking a much larger potential along the ridge in our operated Fenja area and adding high-value barrels to be developed leveraging existing infrastructure in which Vår Energi holds significant equity.”
He added: “We are actively exploring in this area and are currently maturing new prospects.
“The Vidsyn discovery is the consequence of our disciplined and selective exploration strategy focused on expanding our ability to deliver value through proximity to existing infrastructure.”
This highlights the company’s infrastructure-led approach to exploration and development in the region.
DNO executive chairman Bijan Mossavar-Rahmani also commented on the discovery’s significance and the partnership’s intent, stating: “Vidsyn is another exciting addition to our string of Norway discoveries.
“Together with Vår Energi, we will work hard to put it into production faster than is the norm in Norway.”
This underscores a commitment to fast-track development and operational efficiency through collaboration with Vår Energi.
The licence partners comprise Vår Energi as operator with a 75 per cent stake, Sval Energi holding 17.5 per cent, and DNO Norge, a wholly owned subsidiary of DNO, with 7.5 per cent.
The licensees plan to evaluate the Vidsyn discovery alongside nearby prospects to develop an integrated project leveraging existing infrastructure at Fenja and the connected Njord facilities about 35 kilometres northeast, which supports oil export and gas pipeline systems.
The discovery furthers Vår Energi’s 2025 exploration achievements, following an earlier oil discovery at the Zagato exploration well in the Barents Sea near the Goliat field.
In summary, the Vidsyn project is positioned as a strategically important development opportunity in the Norwegian Sea, with a focus on rapid, infrastructure-leveraged production that promises to bolster Vår Energi’s portfolio and value creation in the region.