Eni Norge, a Norwegian subsidiary of the Italian oil company Eni, is in the process of completing the drilling of wildcat 7222/1-1 (Aurelia), in the Barents Sea. The well is dry.

The well is located in located in Production License 226 where Eni Norge is the operator and its partners are DEA Norge, Edison Norge, and Point Resources.

This is the first exploration well in PL 226, which was awarded on May 30, 1997.

Aurelia is located about 80 kilometres east of the 7222/8-1 Skrugard discovery and about 250 kilometres north of Hammerfest. The well is at a water depth of 424 metres, and has been drilled by Saipem’s semi-submersible Scarabeo 8 rig.

According to Eni, the well’s primary exploration targets were the Triassic Kobbe and Ladinian formations and the Permian Ørn Formations, with secondary targets in the Triassic Carnian-Snadd and Permian Røye Formations.

In the Kobbe Formation hydrocarbon (wet gas) bearing sandstone has been encountered but with poor reservoir characteristics. Carnian-Snadd and Permian Formations were water bearing.

Well 7222/1-1 was drilled to a vertical depth of 2,366 metres below sea level and reached total depth in the Permian Røye Formation.

Eni said that the well will be permanently plugged and abandoned.