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Vol. 231 No. 3 |
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| NELL L. BENTON, ASSOCIATE EDITOR |
Africa-Middle East. Anadarko’s Windjammer exploration well in the frontier Rovuma Basin offshore Mozambique has encountered more than 489 net ft of natural gas pay in high-quality reservoir sands, with a gross column of more than 1,200 ft. The company anticipates drilling another 1,491 ft in this well to gain additional geological information prior to reaching total depth.
Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) has discovered three new oil fields, as well as a potentially large gas field, at Al Ghubar South near the Al Ghubar and Qarn Alam Fields in Oman. The fields could contain in excess of 1 billion bbl. The potentially large gas volumes were found at a depth of more than 4,101 ft at very high temperatures, in very tight reservoirs with low permeability.
Pluspetrol has encountered hydrocarbons in its Castanha-1 exploration well, drilled to 11,155 ft TD in the Cabinda Onshore South Block, Angola. The well encountered a gross hydrocarbon column of about 49 ft between 7,263 ft and 7,312 ft in the pre-salt section. Wireline testing recovered oil (estimated to be about 33°API) from this interval, and preparations are underway to production test the well. Pluspetrol Angola is the operator with 45% interest. Other partners include Force Petroleum de Angola, Sonangol P&P, Lacula Oil (a subsidiary of Roc Oil) and Cuba Petroleo.
Americas. Brooks Range Petroleum Corp. is setting casing and carrying out a production flow test on the just-drilled Sak River-1A exploration well in the Beaufort Sea, Alaska. The well was drilled with the Nabors 16E rig from an onshore ice pad to a bottomhole location at an MD of 12,726 ft, or 9,350 ft subsea on a TVD basis. Potential production will be known once testing operations have been completed.
Pemex has made a new offshore oilfield discovery in the southern part of the Mexican sector of the Gulf of Mexico in the Gulf of Campeche. The new field is located off the coast of Campeche state and is believed to contain an estimated 900 million bbl of sweet, light crude oil. Pemex has indicated that the new field could be developed quickly to bring it on production in about two years at a start-up rate of about 150,000 bpd.
New Standard Energy has spudded its Brasher-1 exploration well, the first of a six-well drilling program in its Colorado County, Texas, project. Plans for the second well, targeting a deeper and significantly larger Wilcox target, are progressing, with a three-well drilling contract secured. New South is the operator of the project with a 32.5% working interest.
Asia. Reliance Industries reports it has again encountered signs of a significant reservoir of natural gas offshore Orissa, India, in the Mahanadi Basin. Its appraisal well AJ-6 was drilled on the company’s Bay of Bengal Block NEC-OSN-97/2 after the three previous wells indicated the presence of hydrocarbon-bearing sands. The four wells have all been drilled in the shallow water sector of the block and encountered reservoir sands at depths between 8,150 ft and 8,186 ft. Reliance operates the block and the drilling campaign with 90% interest, with Niko holding the remaining 10%.
Cairn Energy has announced plans for a six-month exploration campaign of the Krishna-Godavari Basin Block KG-ONN-2003/1 offshore the east coast of India. Cairn plans to begin the drilling program in May, with three wells to be drilled in a 1,270-sq-mi concession. Cairn operates the block with 49% interest in partnership with ONGC, which holds the remaining 51%.
Husky Energy has made its third significant gas discovery offshore China in the South China Sea, Block 29/26. The Liuhua 29-1 exploration well was drilled 27 mi northeast of the Liwan 3-1 gas field in a water depth of 2,372 ft. The well tested natural gas at an equipment- restricted rate of 57 MMcfd, with indications that the future deliverability of the well could exceed 90 MMcfd. Husky is the operator of Block 29/26 with 100% interest, although, under its petroleum contract, China National Offshore Oil Corp. has the right to participate in the Liwan development for up to a 51% working interest.
Europe. Ascent Resources, through its subsidiary PetroHungaria, has begun drilling the PEN-101 well in the Peneszlek area of the Nyirseg exploration permits in eastern Hungary. The target of the well is a Miocene gas formation within a structure identified on 3D seismic of the area acquired in 2008. The well is planned for a TD of about 4,921 ft and is expected to take about a month to drill and test.
Lundin Petroleum has begun drilling an exploration well on its Block 16/4 in license PL339 of the Norwegian sector of the North Sea to test the Luno High prospect in the Greater Luno area. The well, 16/4-5, will target sandstones of Jurassic and Triassic age in a combined stratigraphic/structural trap. The prospect is estimated to contain gross unrisked prospective resources of 103 million boe. The planned TD is about 7,464 ft below mean sea level. Lundin Petroleum is the operator of Blocks 16/1 and 16/4, the Luno Field, and the Luno High test well.
Det Norske began drilling an appraisal well on the Draupne prospect in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. Proved recoverable resources are estimated at 25.2–31.5 million boe.
Petroceltic International is preparing to drill its first exploration well on the Elsa prospect in the Adriatic Sea offshore Abruzzo, Italy. Petroceltic estimates that the prospect may contain between 100 million and 200 million bbl of recoverable oil reserves, based on total reserves estimated at approximately 500 million bbl. Petroceltic bumped up its interest in the block from 40% to 70% in an agreement with its concession partner Vega Oil in December and is serving as the operator of both the block and the Elsa exploration well.
South Pacific. Icon Energy has concluded the drilling of the first of its planned four-well coalbed methane exploration drilling program in Block ATP626P, Queensland, Australia. The Lydia-8 well was successfully drilled to a target depth of 2,756 ft, penetrating the Walloon coal measures. Test and log data collected so far indicate that the well is overpressured at this location and that fractures, where developed, are open and permeable. The well has now been completed, cased and suspended for use as a possible monitor well on the site. 
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