Offshore staff
LONDON – Repsol’s Welwitcschia-1A exploration well offshore Namibia, was dry, according to partner Tower Resources.
The drillshipRowan Renaissance spudded the well on license PEL0010 on May 1. Logs suggest the Palaeocene, Maastrichtian, and upper Campanian section reservoirs were less well developed than anticipated.
Drilling was behind schedule due to late delivery of the rig and issues during drilling/ logging operations, including worsening weather conditions.
Repsol expects costs to exceed the $91-million firm well budget, Tower says, and extending the well to test prospective deeper targets, including the Albian, could push the price up by an additional $40 million.
As a result, the partners have agreed to P&A the well and to evaluate the information and its implications for the block.
Graeme Thomson, Tower’s CEO, said the company would continue drilling elsewhere in Africa. “InSouth Africa we await the new 3D on our Algoa-Gamtoos block, and Total is scheduled to be drilling its Brulpadda-1 well on the adjacent block shortly.”
06/13/2014
