Equinor (EQNR) Finds Oil & Gas in Kveikje Exploration Well
Equinor ASA EQNR announced oil and gas discovery near the Troll and Fram area in the Norwegian North Sea.
The hydrocarbon discovery was made in the Kveikje exploration well in production license 293 B. The well was drilled with the help of Odfjell Drilling's Deepsea Stavanger offshore drilling rig.
This is the sixth discovery in this area since September 2019. About 300 million barrels of oil equivalent have been confirmed in the five previous findings.
Based on preliminary estimates, the size of the latest discovery is expected at 4-8 million standard cubic meters of recoverable oil equivalent or 25-50 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalent.The latest discovery is commercially viable, with excellent reservoir quality.
Using the existing infrastructure, Equinor will be able to recover the oil and gas volumes at a lower cost and with low carbon emissions. The company will consider tying the discovery to the Troll B or C platform.
The latest discovery is expected to be evaluated as part of Equinor-operated area development. This could involve several recent discoveries in the area, including Toppand, Swisher, Rover Nord, Echino South and Blasto and the undeveloped Grosbeak field.
In the Kveikje exploration well, multiple drilling targets were found. After the Kveikje discovery, drilling operations continued in the upper part of the Cretaceous stratigraphic sequence. Smaller deposits of petroleum were discovered, which are considered non-commercial. Notably, Equinor plans to drill another exploration well in the area in 2022.
Company Profile & Price Performance
Headquartered in Stavanger, Norway, Equinor is one of the leading integrated energy companies in the world.
Shares of EQNR have outperformed the industry in the past six months. The stock has gained 39.8% compared with the industry’s 28.1% growth.
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Zacks Rank & Other Stocks to Consider
Equinor currently flaunts a Zack Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Investors interested in the energy sector might also look at the following companies that presently sport a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Eni SPA E is among the leading integrated energy players in the world. As of Dec 31, 2021, the company’s net proved reserves were reported at 6,628 million Boe. Eni currently has a Zacks Style Score of A for Value and B and Momentum.
Eni’s earnings for 2022 are expected to increase 103.3% year over year. Through 2021, the company managed to drill several development wells. The aforementioned factor helped the company to produce 1,682 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (MBoe/d) in 2021. The total production volumes comprise 48.3% liquid.
SM Energy Company SM is an independent oil and gas company that explores, exploits, develops, acquires and produces natural gas and crude oil in North America. As of Dec 31, 2021, it had proved reserves of 492 MMBOE, of which 41% was crude oil, 42% natural gas and 17% NGLs.
SM Energy’s earnings for 2022 are expected to increase 384.3% year over year. In 2021, the company generated a free cash flow of $378.3 million, which is significantly higher than the year-ago reported figure of $239.5 million.
Matador Resources Company MTDR is among the leading oil and gas explorer in shale and unconventional resources in the United States. Total proved oil and gas reserves of Matador grew 20% year over year through 2021 to 323.4 million Boe, marking an all-time high level.
Matador’s earnings for 2022 are expected to increase 89.4% year over year. The company announced a quarterly cash dividend of 5 cents per share, which doubled from the previous cash dividend of 2.5 cents initiated last year.
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