Consent is given to energy company Statoil to start drilling an appraisal well in the Johan Sverdrup oil field in the North Sea, the Norwegian government said. The Petroleum Safety Authority of Norway said it gave its approval for the drilling of an appraisal well. Drilling into the Johan Svedrup oil field is scheduled to start in December and should last 30 days. “The field is under development and production is planned to start in 2019,” the safety regulator said. Developed over a series of phases, operator Statoil said the Johan Sverdrup oil field should account for up to 25 percent of total Norwegian petroleum production once at peak capacity. Statoil and its partners at Johan Sverdrup, Maersk Oil and Lundin Petroleum, in […]