StatoilHydro Brings Tyrihans Oil, Gas Field Onstream

StatoilHydro ASA (STL.OS) Wednesday said its Tyrihans oil and gas field has started producing, and will reach plateau daily output of 96,000 barrels of oil equivalent in about seven years.

Tyrihans is an example of a development that has been "tied back" to existing infrastructure in the area, in this case Kristin and Aasgard in the Halten Bank area of the Norwegian Sea. Connecting new fields to older infrastructure means developments are more economic.

The field is comprised of Tyrihans South, an oil field with a gas cap, and Tyrihans North, a gas and condensate discovery with a thin oil zone. The field's reserves are on a par with neighboring Kristin's.

Output from the field is shipped through a 43 kilometer pipeline to Kristin for processing. The gas is sent onshore through the Aasgard transport line, while oil and condensate are piped to Aasgard C storage ship for transport by tanker.

StatoilHydro said Tyrihans is the largest field being brought online by the company in 2009.

It owns 58.85%, Total SA (TOT) owns 23.18%, Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM) owns 11.75% and Eni Norge (E) owns 6.23%.

Company Web site: www.statoilhydro.com

-By Elizabeth Adams, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]