Norway's DNO hands Ekofisk redevelopment project stake to Orlen

DNO has agreed to hand over its stake in a project to redevelop long-shuttered Ekofisk area oil fields in the North Sea to Poland's Orlen, taking an interest in the Cassio exploration prospect in return, the Norwegian company said Nov. 18.

In a statement, DNO said it would divest its 7.604% stake in the Ekofisk Previously Produced Fields development in license PLO18B and PLO18F on the Norwegian Continental Shelf to Orlen as part of an effort to "highgrade" its North Sea portfolio.

The project covers redevelopment of mature shut-in fields that went offline in 1998, namely the Ekofisk West and Albuskjell projects.

Production is expected to start up in 2029, DNO said, and the assets are expected to produce up to 28,000 boe/d of oil and gas at their peak.

"As we continue to highgrade our North Sea portfolio, our focus is on increasing near-term cash flow with less spend and more barrels more quickly," said DNO's executive chairman Bijan Mossavar-Rahmani.

"We have chosen to deploy our share of the significant capital expenditure necessary in ways that play to our strengths, namely exploration and rapid-fire development of our existing discoveries."

The Ekofisk PPF project is operated by ConocoPhillips with 35.112%, alongside Var Energi with 52.284%, Petoro with 5% and now Orlen.

Var Energi, which on Oct. 1 boosted its stake in Ekofisk PPF in a deal with TotalEnergies, said the project entails installing four subsea production templates and 11 production wells.

The DNO-Orlen transaction does not cover the producing Ekofisk, Eldfisk and Embla fields, in which the Norwegian firm will retain its 7.604% stake, as well as its share in the Tor Unit.

Ekofisk, which was discovered in 1969 and came on stream in 1971, is a mainstay of Norway's oil production and a component of the Platts North Sea benchmark Dated Brent, which was last assessed at $63.66/b.

Norway has been on a drive to bring previously producing fields back online in recent years.

Cassio, Verdane fields

The agreement -- which requires regulatory approval -- will also see DNO acquire from Orlen a 20% interest in PL1135, which contains the Cassio exploration prospect, as well as a small additional interest in the upcoming Verdande field.

Cassio sits north of DNO's Othello prospect in the Norwegian North Sea. A wildcat is expected to be drilled on the acreage in late 2026.

Following the transaction, DNO -- which also has projects in the Middle East and West Africa -- will have a 14.8251% interest in Verdande. It recently added 3.5% to its stake in the project through an asset swap with Aker BP.

Verdande, located in the Nome area, is in advanced development and is scheduled to start producing later this year, according to the Norwegian company. Production is expected to rise to around 20,000 boe/d.

The deal is Orlen's latest move to beef up its North Sea portfolio.

In October, the Polish company acquired a 20.23% stake in the Tommeliten Gamma gas field from TotalEnergies, taking its stake in the ConocoPhillips-operated North Sea field to 62.61%.

Orlen said production from the field -- which went offline in 1998 -- is due to resume in 2029, while it plans to export gas to Poland.

The Polish company, which has taken steps to end its use of Russian hydrocarbons, pumped 91,900 boe/d of oil and gas from Norway in the second quarter of 2025.