Offshore staff
GODALMING, UK – Hurricane Energy has received an updated competent person’s report (CPR) on the resources of various fractured basement oil discoveries and prospects west of Shetland.
RPS Energy Consultants’ report covers all Hurricane’s Rona Ridge assets excluding the Lancaster field in license P.1368 Central, which was covered by another CPR issued this May.
The new report has increased the total 2P reserves + 2C contingent resources by 231% to 2.6 Bboe, comprising:
- Halifax discovery: 1.235 MMboe 2C
- Lincoln discovery: 604 MMboe 2C
- Undrilled Warwick prospect: Best Case (P50) prospective resources of 935 MMbbl, with a 77% chance of a discovery.
RPS has concluded that Halifax has similar reservoir properties to Lancaster, and the two accumulations may share a common aquifer. The difference in depth in the oil-water contact between Lancaster and Halifax - around 200 m (656 ft) - may be caused by a tilted oil-water contact or the presence of intra-basement sealing faults.
The most likely reason for the Halifax drillstem test recovering only traces of formation oil to surface, RPS added, appears to be a combination of drilling mud and granite fines that resulted in a thick paste. This blocked fractures and made it difficult for the well to flow.
Lincoln appears to have similar reservoir properties to Lancaster. The Brynhild Fault Zone appears to separate the two accumulations, and the oil-water contact at Lincoln is materially deeper than that established for Lancaster.
Although Lincoln and Warwick could be a single hydrocarbon accumulation, this will need to be proven by drilling a well on Warwick.
Hurricane now plans to focus on de-risking the contingent resource range for Halifax and Lincoln via a program that includes work to confirm reservoir fluid properties, the respective oil-water contacts, and demonstrating commercial flow from well testing.
Licenses P.1485 and P.1835, containing the Typhoon and Tempest prospects, were excluded from the CPR. Hurricane intends to relinquish these licences.
The company’sLancaster early production system (EPS) remains on track for first oil in 1H 2019.
Hurricane is on the look-out for partners for its various assets; however, in view of the capital commitments for a development of the size indicated by the resource upgrade, the company expects interested parties to first wait for initial results from the Lancaster EPS.
12/11/2017
