Offshore staff
LONDON – Statoil’s first operated well offshore Mozambique has discovered gas, according to partner Tullow Oil.
The drillshipDiscoverer Americas drilled Cachalote-1 in 688 m (2,257 ft) of water in offshore Area 2, targeting various geological plays. It encountered 38 m (124 ft) of gas-bearing reservoir sandstones in an Upper Cretaceous deepwater channel system on the outboard flank of the Ibo High.
Initial analysis suggests volumes are not large enough for development on a standalone basis. There was no indication of hydrocarbons in the deeper target.
The well was then side tracked to target older sandstone reservoirs thought to be developed on the inboard flank of the Ibo High. Thick sandstones were encountered, but were not of reservoir quality.
Discoverer Americas will next drill Buzio-1 in the eastern part of the license, again on the outboard flank of the Ibo High.
Angus McCoss, Tullow’s exploration director, said: “The potential for discovering oil in this region remains after we encountered wet gas shows in the deeper side track. We will integrate this valuable data into our regional model to improve our chances of unlocking the oil play potential offshore Mozambique.”
OffshoreFrench Guiana, the company is participating in a four-well program operated by Shell.
The drillshipStena ICEMax is preparing to P&A the third well, GM-ES-4, on the Cebus prospect with no indications of hydrocarbons. It will then drill the final well, GM-ES-5.
McCoss said: “This well will be located on the Cingulata fan with the objective of determining the oil/water contact of the Zaedyus-1 discovery by measuring the pressure in the water leg as well as gathering geological data from deeper unpenetrated sections.”
7/23/2013
