Statoil has decided to delay the investment decision for the Johan Castberg project in the Norwegian Barents Sea. Statoil has continued to mature the resource base and development plans for the project. There are still uncertainties related to the resource estimate and investment level.
Moreover, the Norwegian government has recently proposed reduced uplift in the petroleum tax system, which reduces the attractiveness of future projects, particularly marginal fields and fields which require new infrastructure. This has made it necessary to review the Johan Castberg project. Investment was estimated at US$15.5bn (€11.9bn)
Johan Castberg (PL 532) is located 240 km north-west of Hammerfest in Norway. The field consists of the Skrugard discovery from 2011 and Havis, which was discovered in 2012. Preliminary volume estimates are in the range of 400-600 mbl of oil. Statoil is the operator of production license PL532 with 50% equity. The other partners are Eni Norge AS (30%) and Petoro (20%).