Gullfaks Sør, Phase I completed
The start-up of Gullfaks Sør can be said to have taken place on 10 October 1998, with the start-up of the Gullveig discovery, which forms part of the Gullfaks Sør field.
Phase I of this development took place in stages, with different key dates and milestones—perhaps offering opportunities for the Gullfaks license and Statoil (now Equinor) to celebrate themselves and the work that had been carried out.
On 18 March, the final stage was initiated. What is somewhat confusingly referred to as Gullfaks Sør (see image and fact box) came on stream. In total, 24 wells were planned to produce from Gullfaks Sør: four well templates at the Gullfaks Sør discovery, three templates at Rimfaks, and one at Gullveig.[REMOVE]Fotnote: Bryne, Berit. «Møter framtiden under vann» i Statoil magasin (trykt utg.). 1999 Vol. 21 Nr. 2, s. 23.
Gullfaks Sør
Gullveig, Rimfaks, and Gullfaks Sør, as shown on the map above, along with Skinfaks and Gulltopp (developed later), are all part of Gullfaks Sør and are considered discoveries under this field.[REMOVE]Fotnote:«Gullfaks Sør» on Norwegian Petroleum. https://www.norskpetroleum.no/en/facts/field/gullfaks-sor/ Downloaded 8 January 2026.
Gullfaks Sør has been developed in several stages through different development and operation plans.
The term Gullfaks Sør is commonly used to describe the entire area, while the specific names are used when more precision is needed.
As of April 1999, five satellite wells were in production on the Gullfaks field. Over the course of the spring and summer, one new well was scheduled to be brought on stream each month.
The wells, which were primarily intended to produce oil, were all to send their oil via pipelines to Gullfaks A. Oil from the Gullveig and Rimfaks discoveries was to be transported through eight well-stream pipelines ranging from 10 to 18 kilometers in length. At the Gullfaks Sør discovery, however, the oil contained such a high wax content that a different solution was chosen.
The Pipeline Bundle
The oil was to be transported through a single pipeline within a specially developed pipeline bundle. As part of the bundle, additional pipelines were also installed. Warm produced water from Gullfaks A was sent through small pipes to ensure heating of the oil in the larger pipeline, preventing the oil from solidifying. The pipeline bundle also contained control cables, chemical and service lines, and gas injection pipelines.[REMOVE]Fotnote: Bryne, Berit. «Møter framtiden under vann» i Statoil magasin (trykt utg.). 1999 Vol. 21 Nr. 2, s. 20.
In 2025, the model was donated to the Norwegian Petroleum Museum, which will preserve it for future generations.
Production start for RimfaksStart of production for Visund