Cladhan discovery in North Sea could hold 100 to 200 million bbl
EnCore Oil and its partner Wintershall are expected to announce a major new North Sea oil discovery in the next few days at their Cladhan Field northeast of Shetland in the UK sector of the North Sea.
The news of the discovery leaked out today in advance of EnCore making the find public and was reported in a number of regional newspapers including the Sunday Times and the Scotland Herald. Both said the Cladhan discovery is thought to contain between 100 million and 200 million bbl of oil.
EnCore drilled the Cladhan discovery well with Transocean's semisubmersible drilling rig J.W. McLean in Blocks 210/29a and 210/30a on the western margin of the East Shetland Basin as a follow-up to the 2008 light oil discovery (210/29a-4) that went to a total depth of 9,734 ft (2,967 meters). It was decided at the time not to test the well and to re-enter it at a future date for sidetracking, which is now underway with the current appraisal/discovery.
Wireline logging confirmed 25 ft of net hydrocarbon pay (light oil with no oil-water contract) over a gross interval of more than 110 ft.
The find follows two other significant discoveries in the North Sea this summer, the largest field discovery in nine years, the 300-million bbl Catcher Field, and the Blakeney discovery. Cladhan Field and its Blocks 210/29a and 210/30a, PL1064, are operated by Sterling Resources with 39.9% interest in partnership with EnCore and Wintershall with 16.6% and 33.5% interest respectively. Dyas holds the remaiing 10.0%.
09/01/2010