Subsea7 has signed a new long-term strategic collaboration agreement between Equinor and Subsea Integration Alliance, which comprises Subsea7 and OneSubsea, securing exclusive collaboration on the Wisting field offshore Norway, and Bay du Nord, off Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada.

The agreement, signed on May 2, 2024, represents an innovative, integrated way of working. It enables early information sharing and other collaborative benefits critical to unlocking subsea projects by making them economically viable.

Building on their experience as members of Subsea Integration Alliance, this agreement also further cements Subsea7 and OneSubsea’s positions as trusted contractors to Equinor.

The agreement paves the way for exclusive collaboration to begin immediately on early, joint concept studies for two projects: the Wisting field offshore Norway, and Bay du Nord, off Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.

Under the agreement, any resulting EPCI scopes would be directly awarded to the Alliance if a final investment decision is made.

Bringing together the expertise, experience and capabilities of Equinor, Subsea7 and OneSubsea has enabled further exploratory work at both projects to recommence and through the collaboration agreement, further such opportunities are expected to be unlocked in the short to medium term.

“Equinor is working hard to improve and mature the Wisting and Bay du Nord projects. Selecting the supplier at this early stage is a new way of approaching project development for us, and a vote of confidence in Subsea Integration Alliance. We look forward to develop concepts together, in a process with full visibility on profitability, and joint efforts to make these challenging projects sanctionable,” said Trond Bokn, Senior Vice President for Project Development of Equinor.

“Subsea7 has been collaborating with Equinor for many years to optimise challenging subsea developments ranging from bundle solutions for the Snorre Expansion to the integrated Bacalhau development in Brazil. We look forward to extending and deepening this relationship as we work together to unlock the value in Wisting and Bay du Nord,” added John Evans, CEO of Subsea7 said.

The Bay du Nord project (BdN) consists of several oil discoveries in the Flemish Pass basin, some 500 km northeast of St. John’s in Newfoundland and Labrador. The first discovery was made by Equinor in 2013, followed by additional discoveries in 2014, 2016 and 2020.

Equinor plans to develop the Bay du Nord field using a floating production unit for storage and offshore offloading (FPSO), which also is a suited solution for tie-back of adjacent discoveries and future prospects.

In May 2023, following changing market conditions and subsequent high cost inflation, Equinor and its partner BP postponed the Bay du Nord development project up to three years.

Equinor 'More Optimstic' About Proceeeding with Bay Du Nord Offshore Project After Delay

Wisting filed (PL 537) was discovered in 2013 by OMV. Equinor is the operator in the development and operations phase. The discovery is located in the Hoop area in the Barents Sea, some 310 km north of Hammerfest.

The Wisting partners are Equinor (35 %), AkerBP (35 %), Petoro AS (20 %) and INPEX Idemitsu Norge (10 %).

Equinor and the Wisting partners decided to postpone the investment decision that was scheduled for December 2022. The maturation of the project continues, aiming for an investment decision by end of 2026, the partners said at the time.