BP and Sociedade Nacional de Combustíveis de Angola (Sonangol) have discovered oil with the Juno-1 well in the ultra-deepwater Block 31 offshore Angola.
Juno-1 is the seventh successful discovery well BP has drilled in Block 31, following Plutao, Saturno, Marte, Venus, Palas, and Ceres. The well is located 10 km northwest of the recent Palas discovery and 22 km south of the Ceres discovery announced earlier in 2005.
Juno-1 was drilled by theJack Ryan drill ship in a water depth of 1,601 m some 165 km off the Angolan coast.
The well was drilled to a total depth of 3,200 m and tested at a mechanically restricted rate of 2,676 b/d of oil through a 28/64-in. choke.
BP is currently studying development concepts for the discoveries in the southeastern region of the block.
Block 31 and its operatorship was awarded in 1999 by Angola's state oil company Sonangol to BP with a 26.67% equity, together with its partners Esso Exploration and Production Angola (Block 31) Ltd. 25%, Sonangol, E.P. 20%, Statoil Angola A.S.13.33%, Marathon Petroleum Angola Block 31 Ltd. 10% and TEPA (Block 31) Ltd. (Total group) 5%.
BP's involvement with Angola goes back to the mid-1970s. During the 1990s, BP made very substantial investments in Angola's offshore oil and it is now an important part of the company's upstream portfolio. BP has interests in four blocks with operatorship of two.
BP also operates Block 18, which contains the Greater Plutonio fields, which are currently being developed. BP has 50% equity in the block. Sonangol Sinopec International (SSI) also has 50%.
(7/25/2005)
