Exploration Cornerstone of Our Success
Passion, knowledge and advanced technologies: The key to finding gas and oil.


Wintershall Dea focuses on maintaining a diverse license portfolio. That means the company seeks to secure acreage in core areas near to existing assets, and to explore for new fields that can be developed over the next decades. We have a mix of prospects in different areas and geological plays, and the opportunity to plan near-field exploration to maximise value of ownership in existing fields. With exploration licenses spread across the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea, Wintershall Dea has a portfolio that captures the opportunities along the length of the Norwegian Continental Shelf. Success is never certain in exploration, but the passion and knowledge of the Wintershall Dea geologists and geophysicists, combined with the use of advanced technologies, gives the company the greatest chance of striking gas or oil.
North Sea
Rich infrastructure provides high potential for tiebacks
Norwegian Sea
Significant growth area with solid infrastructure and new areas
Barents Sea
Holds more than half of Norway’s undiscovered resources
Knowledge-based exploration
Drilling is the only way of definitively discovering hydrocarbons. But before committing to labour- and capital-intensive drilling campaigns, the company takes into account all knowledge and information available to improve the odds. Scientists review seismic and other data about a reservoir and determine if a prospect is ripe for exploration.


The only way of finding hydrocarbons is by drilling.