Equinor and ORLEN sign three-year Johan Sverdrup crude supply deal

Deal terms

Equinor will sell crude oil from the Johan Sverdrup field to ORLEN under an agreement running three years from the beginning of September. Annual supplies under the agreement will be from 5 million tonnes to over 9 million tonnes; further commercial terms are confidential. The deal also allows for the possibility of supplying other crude grades produced from fields on the Norwegian Continental Shelf.

Strategic rationale

The agreement expands the energy partnership between the two companies and is positioned as a contribution to European security of supply. Equinor says the sales will support ORLEN’s refineries in Poland, Lithuania and the Czech Republic. ORLEN states the Norwegian crude may account for up to one-quarter of its annual demand and frames the deal as a response to global market instability.

Field profile

Johan Sverdrup is the oil field with the highest production on the Norwegian continental shelf. The field is noted for highly energy-efficient production with significantly lower CO₂ emissions from production than the global average, mainly due to power from shore.

Broader cooperation

Equinor’s engagement in Poland extends beyond crude supply to pipeline gas, LNG and lower-carbon projects. Together with Polenergia it is developing the Bałtyk offshore wind projects, and Equinor’s subsidiary Wento is expanding onshore renewables in Poland—solar, onshore wind and battery storage—with a growing project pipeline.