Power planned for giant North Sea oil, gas field

Norwegian energy company Statoil said Monday it signed a $130 million contract to help develop the giant offshore Johan Sverdrup reserve field in the North Sea.

The contract for power and automation group ABB calls for delivery of electrical equipment to power the first phase of the Johan Sverdrup field.

"Using onshore electricity to run these oil platforms will eliminate the need for local gas-turbine power generation, significantly lowering CO2 emissions as well as operating and maintenance costs," Peter Terwiesch, president of ABB's process automation division, said in a statement.

Statoil said it expects delivery of the equipment by early 2017.

Development plans for Johan Sverdrup were submitted to Norwegian Petroleum Minister Tord Lien and the National Petroleum Directorate, the nation's energy regulator, last month. The field is the fifth largest discovery ever made on the Norwegian continental shelf, described by the NPD as "gigantic."

Peak production is expected to be as high as 650,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. Johan Sverdrup will account for 25 percent of the combined production from the Norwegian continental shelf once it's in full swing.

"During the first phase of the field development a system will be established for supplying power from shore to production start late in 2019," the Norwegian company said in a separate Monday statement.