Norwegian oil major Statoil has received consent from the offshore safety body, the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA), to drill an exploration well offshore Norway with Songa Offshore’s semi-submersible rig.

PSA said that the consent allows Statoil to use the Songa Delta semi-submersible drilling rig to drill the exploration well designated 6407/7-9 S and possible sidetrack wells 6407/7-9 A and 6407/7-9 B in the Statoil-operated production license 107C in the Norwegian Sea.

According to the PSA, drilling is scheduled to begin in late June and estimated to last 33 days depending on whether a discovery is made or not.

As Songa Offshore informed on June 21 that Statoil would suspend the contract for the Songa Delta after the Slemmestad well in the North Sea and the PSA’s consent letter to Statoil was issued a day later, on June 22, it remains unclear whether the rig will still go on a suspension rate and if Statoil will stick to its decision to drill the well applied for on June 3. Songa said earlier the rig would go on suspension from the end of June.

The 1981-built Songa Delta is a semi-submersible drilling unit, capable of operating in water depths up to 2,300 feet. The rig was issued with an Acknowledgment of Compliance (AoC) by the PSA in November 2012.

Production license 107C was granted in 2009 and is valid until 2019. The license operator is Statoil with 20 percent interest while other licensees are Engie E&P Norge with 40 percent, DEA Norge with 30 percent, Faroe Petroleum Norge and VNG Norge with 7.5 and 2.5 percent interest respectively.