Norway: Statoil's extreme Kristin starts flowing

THE KRISTIN field, with the most extreme high-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) conditions yet tackled in Norwegian waters, came on stream last month. Despite the field's extreme reservoir conditions, Statoil opted to use a floating production facility and subsea wells for the development – the first time that wells have been drilled into such a demanding formation from a floating rig and the first time subsea installations have been used for such reservoir conditions. The Kristin reservoir – in the southwest part of the Haltenbank, in the Norwegian Sea – lies at a depth of 4,500 metres below the seabed. Because of the great depth, the reservoir pressure is 911 bar and the temperature is 170°