OSLO, Sweden, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- Swedish energy company Lundin Petroleum said Monday it was looking for the presence of hydrocarbons in the southern waters of the North Sea.
Lundin said it was drilling an exploration well in the Ogna prospect in the Norwegian waters of the North Sea. The company said the main purpose of the drilling was to prove the existence of hydrocarbons.
"Lundin Petroleum estimates the Ogna prospect to contain unrisked, gross, prospective resources of 156 million barrels of oil equivalent," the company said in a statement.
Drilling is expected to last about 50 days and reach a depth of about 8,000 feet below mean sea level.
Last week, the company said its Norwegian subsidiary started drilling an appraisal well in the southeastern section of the Johan Sverdrup discovery of the eastern coast of Norway. Energy company Statoil that same week said it found a 98-foot gross column of oil from appraisal well 16/2-15 in the discovery area.
