UPDATE 1-Statoil ups Snoehvit reserve estimate by 11 pct

OSLO Jan 26 (Reuters) - Statoil's Snoehvit offshore gas field in the Arctic contains some 11 percent more in gas reserves than originally thought, Statoil said on Thursday.

Statoil has recently made a new assessment of the reserves at Snoehvit, and the company now estimates the field contains about 210 billion cubic metres of gas, an increase of 20 cubic metres compared to estimates made when the field was developed.

Norwegian broadcaster NRK said earlier on Thursday the reserves "look to be about 50 percent" greater than expected 10 years ago, quoting a Statoil executive.

"What NRK says is wrong," Statoil spokesman Ola Anders Skauby told Reuters.

Norway's parliament approved Snoehvit for development in 2002.