Offshore staff
LONDON -- Afren Plc. has had an active few months offshore Africa. The Ofa well in the northern Niger Delta is undergoing testing. The deepest hydrocarbon bearing zone (N4000) has been tested at a depth of 7,200 ft (2,195 m) yielding flow rates of up to 1,000 b/d on a 20 in. (50.8 cm) choke. The shallower oil bearing zones are being tested. Additional work is under way to optimize future production from the filed, Afren says. Afren and partner Independent Energy Ltd. deployed an electric submersible pump during the testing program.
Afren recently signed an agreement with Nigeria's Excel for the development of the shallow-water Eremor field in OML 46. Phase I of the field development plan includes re-entry and completion of the existing well and construction of a 7 km (4 mi) long oil evacuation line to the nearest flow station. The field development plan and environmental impact assessment have been approved, and development work is being planned.
Following the successful appraisal drilling program completed in Dec. 2006, Afren has put in place the drilling capability, financing structure, development plan, and production capacity for the Okoro Setu project. All of the major contracts have been awarded including the drilling FPSO, drilling consumables, the wellhead decks, and flexible flow lines.
TheArmada Perkassa FPSO is undergoing a planned systems upgrade in Keppel Shipyard in Singapore to meet project requirements. Afren expects the FPSO to arrive on location in December. The company is on track to achieve its target of first oil in early 2008 and production of 15,000-20,000 b/d in mid 2008, Afren says.
Afren also is working offshore Gabon and expects to drill a well on the Admiral prospect on the Themis Marin license in 4Q 2007. Afren has a 12.86% stake in the license, which is operated by Sterling.
"We are delighted with the initial results from the Ofa well test, having achieved a flow rate of up to 1,000 b/d from the deepest hydrocarbon bearing horizon, while we continue the testing program in the shallower intervals," says Osman Shahenshah, chief executive of Afren. "We are looking forward to development drilling on Okoro Setu, scheduled for Q4 2007, in addition to executing phase one of the Eremor development plan and exploration drilling in Congo and Gabon. We therefore remain focused on first oil in early 2008, 15,000 to 20,000 b/d from Okoro Setu by mid-2008 and continue to evaluate our strong new ventures pipeline."
8/15/2007