The Dan oil field is a large
oil
An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) and lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturate ...
and associated
gas field
A petroleum reservoir or oil and gas reservoir is a subsurface accumulation of hydrocarbons contained in porous or fractured rock formations. Such reservoirs form when kerogen (ancient plant matter) is created in surrounding rock by the presenc ...
in the Danish sector of the
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
, about west of
Esbjerg
Esbjerg (, ) is a seaport city and seat of Esbjerg Municipality on the west coast of the Jutland peninsula in southwest Denmark. By road, it is west of Kolding and southwest of Aarhus. With an urban area, urban population of 71,554 (1 January ...
. Oil and gas are produced through a complex of offshore installations. The ''Kraka'' and ''Regnar'' fields are satellites to the Dan installations.
The field
The Dan field was discovered in May 1971 by the ''Britannia'' oil rig in Denmark Block 7.3 of the North Sea.
The reservoir is an Upper
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...
Danian chalk at a depth of 5,800 to 6,400 feet (1,768 to 1,951 metres). The oil has an
API gravity
The American Petroleum Institute gravity, or API gravity, is a measure of how heavy or light a petroleum liquid is compared to water: if its API gravity is greater than 10, it is lighter and floats on water; if less than 10, it is heavier and sinks ...
of 30.4 and a gas oil ratio of 600 standard cubic feet per barrel (scf/bbl). The estimated recoverable reserves are 90–125 million barrels (14.3–19.9 million cubic metres) of oil and 1.2–1.3 trillion cubic feet (34–37 billion cubic metres) of gas.
Development
The field was developed in phases through multi-platform installations, summarized as follows:
Production of condensate (in 1000s of barrels) was:
Kraka and Regnar fields
The Kraka and Regnar fields are satellites to the Dan installation. The characteristics of the fields are as follows.
The fields are developed through two offshore installations as shown.
The oil production profile of the Kraka and Regnar fields (in 1000 cubic metres) is as shown.
See also
*
Tyra Field
Tyra Field is the largest gas condensate field in the Danish Sector of the North Sea. It was discovered in 1968 and production started in 1984.
The field is owned by Dansk Undergrunds Consortium, a partnership between Total, BlueNord and Nord ...
*
Gorm Field
*
Halfdan field
*
Skjold oil field
The Skjold oil field () is a crude oil and associated gas production field in the Danish sector of the central North Sea, close to the Danish-German median line. Production of oil started in 1982, peak oil was achieved in 1991 and production is ...
*
Siri, Nini and Cecilie oil fields
*
Valdemar oil and gas field
*
South Arne oil and gas field
*
Harald gas field
*
Ravn oil field
References
{{coord missing, Denmark
Maersk Oil
Natural gas fields in Denmark
North Sea oil fields
Oil fields of Denmark