ABSTRACT
Ekofisk was the turning point for exploration in the North Sea. The discovery came at the point where Phillips was ready to join the rest of the exploration groups in the region and move elsewhere. Ekofisk ushered in a new era in the history of the Phillips Petroleum Company. It was by far the biggest discovery in the lifetime of the company. Ekofisk is one of the world's largest oil fields, but it combined obstacles of deep water, stormy, sometimes violent seas, and a great distance to shore. The investment includes development of Ekofisk and six nearby fields, an oil pipeline to Teesside, England, a natural gas pipeline to Emden, Germany, and related processing facilities on shore. A pipeline to move Ekofisk area North Sea production to shore moved ahead in 1972, when a government appointed committee recommended to the Norwegian government that crude oil and condensate be landed in the United Kingdom at North Tees.
