Improved well flow monitoring: Wintershall Dea invests in Wellstarter

• Wellstarter’s Heatwave Inflow Profile log (HIPlog) solution offers cost-effective and emissions free downhole flow monitoring
• Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures GmbH acquires a 24 per cent stake in the Norwegian company

Wintershall Dea has invested in smart well flow diagnostics provider Wellstarter. The Norwegian based company has developed an innovative solution, offering cost effective and real time wireless downhole flow monitoring. The Heatwave Inflow Profile log (HIPlog) technology enables optimized reservoir management, fundamental in order to optimize field recovery.

Key decisions for reservoir management like where to drill infill wells, how to complete a well and how to balance production and injection all requires reliable downhole production data. Conventional technologies used to acquire this data, such as production logging tools, can involve high cost and risk. HIPlog offers affordable, low risk and emission-free tracing of steady-state flow with real time information. It does so based on heat pulses released into the well stream. The heat pulse is picked up by sensors and can be analyzed in real-time, either on site or remotely.

“The Wellstarter HIPlog technology offers reliable, hassle-free and highly cost-effective flow diagnostics in most well conditions. It will offer us value across a range of applications”, says Andreas Berger, Managing Director of Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures. “Because the solution is also applicable for CO₂ injection monitoring, we see potential for the technology not just in E&P but also in our growing carbon management business.”

“This investment from Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures is a validation of the potential of our HIPlog downhole flow monitoring solution. Along with recent successes during field tests this gives us great confidence in our ability to deliver the HIPlog solution to a global market. The Wellstarter team looks forward to creating value for customers and shareholders alike”, says Erik Skogen, CEO of Wellstarter.

Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures GmbH has acquired a 24 per cent stake in the company. The company invested alongside ARA Energy AS in this investment round, joining existing shareholders Prores AS and ProVenture. Equinor Ventures AS and Shell Ventures BV are indirectly investors in Wellstarter AS, being investors in ProVenture Seed II AS. Innovation Norway and the Norwegian Research Council also support Wellstarter with grants.

Erik I. Nakken, Chairman of Wellstarter, says: “The investment from WDTV along with additional investments from existing shareholders and the management team will support the commercialization of the HIPlog technology.”

‘’We welcome Wintershall Dea Technology Venture as co-investor in Wellstarter in this series A equity capital increase, and look forward to work together with their highly experienced VC team.” Says Dr. David Lysne, Managing Partner ProVenture.

_{Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures GmbH (WDTV) is the venture capital arm of Wintershall Dea, Europe’s leading independent gas and oil company. WDTV is responsible for integrating innovative concepts and technologies to the core businesses of the company. The aim of WDTV is to make investments into digital solutions and relevant break-through technologies and business innovations along the value-chain of our industry. The focus of investment is on cost reduction, increased recovery of hydrocarbons, reduction of environmental footprint or reduction of subsurface uncertainty.}

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