How it all began
Maersk Oil is part of the A.P. Moller - Maersk Group and was established in 1962 after the group was awarded a concession for oil and gas exploration and production in Denmark. The company is independent and operates oil production of about 600,000 barrels per day and gas production of up to 1,000 million cubic feet per day.
Between 1960-1963, A.P. Møller applied for an oil exploration concession in Denmark, formed the Dansk Undergrunds Consortium (DUC) and established Maersk Oil's forebearer, Dansk Boreselskab. The extension of the concession area in the Danish North Sea shelf laid the groundwork for the further development.
In 1963-1973, attention was increasingly directed towards the delimitation of the Danish North Sea shelf area and initial exploration. The DUC soon made its first discovery and the Dan Field, the first in Denmark, came onstream in the summer of 1972.
Extensive development
During the years of high oil prices, 1973-1985, the DUC developed extensively the production system in its Danish North Sea fields. It also entered into a major gas sales agreement with the Danish State, which in turn made extensive cuts to the A.P. Møller concession.
The oil price falls from 1985 onward triggered focus on technological innovation, which now forms the basis of Maersk Oil's significant progress. The successful development of the tight Danish reservoirs gave Maersk Oil confidence to take on Qatar's challenging Al Shaheen field in 1992 and to expanded geographically beyond to a number of regions.
Maersk Oil is now producing oil from the Danish and UK sections of the North Sea, Qatar, Algeria and Kazakhstan. It conducts exploration activities in those areas as well as offshore Norway, the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, Brazil, Angola and Oman.
The work and development by the DUC partners since 1962 has had a positive impact on the Danish society. The activities have prepared the grounds for a new Danish industry, created jobs, granted the country self-sufficiency in oil and gas, had a positive effect on the balance of payments and resulted in billions in revenues to the Danish state in the form of taxes and royalties.