Offshore staff
NAIROBI, Kenya -- News from Kenya indicates that 51-mm (20-in) casing has been set at 2,944 m (9,659 ft), 751 m (2,464 ft) below the seabed, and that drilling has resumed at the Pomboo No. 1 well in license L-5 offshore Kenya.
Limited offshore drilling activity is under way following two decades of relative inactivity.
According to Woodside Energy Ltd., operator of the L-5 block, the company identified East Africa several years ago as an under-explored frontier province with the potential to replicate the company's success in Mauritania, West Africa. Entry into these regions provided Woodside with a relatively low-cost initial investment in a very large under-explored area.
Woodside acquired 40% interest in the Kenya L-5 license along with three other blocks from Dana Petroleum Plc. subsidiary Dana Petroleum (E&P) Ltd. in May 2003, and agreed to operate blocks L-5, L-7, L-10, and L-11 as a condition of the farm-in.
The four blocks cover 47,500 sq km (18,340 sq mi) in water depths to 3,000 m (9,842 ft). The licenses also include some onshore areas and coastal waters.
Partners on the Kenya L-5 license include Dana Petroleum (E&P) Ltd. with 30% interest, Repsol with 20% interest, and Global Petroleum Ltd. with the remaining 20%.
12/15/2006
