Decommissioning Insight 2019

DECOMMISSIONING INSIGHT 2019

6.1 North Sea Well Decommissioning Activity

Figure 15: Well Decommissioning in the North Sea 2019, to 2028

400

UK Norway The Netherlands Denmark

350

300

250

200

50 Number of Wells to be Decommissioned 100 150

0

2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028

Source: OGUK, OGA & Nexstep

Country

Sub-Totals

Percentage

UK

1,630

62% 16% 17%

Norway

417 457 120

The Netherlands

Denmark

5%

TOTAL

2,624

100%

Overall, 2,624 wells are expected to be decommissioned in the North Sea over the next decade, an increase from the 2,379 reported in last year’s report. The UK remains the nation with the greatest proportion of this workload (62 per cent), almost identical to what was reported last year. The Netherlands and Norway have a relatively equal spread of the activity, but their respective work profiles show that the bulk of well decommissioning activity in the Netherlands is happening from 2019 to 2024 whereas the bulk of the Norwegian workload is from 2025 onwards. Three operators from Denmark provided data, though only two have decommissioning activity within the survey period. This shows activity forecast to begin in 2020 but most of the activity expected in 2025 and 2026. Across the North Sea basin, it is forecast that on average around 220 wells will be decommissioned per year up until 2024, rising to an average of 327 wells from 2025 to the end of the period.

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