BW Energy has started drilling an exploration well at the Hibiscus Updip prospect on its Dussafu Marin permit located offshore Gabon.
BW Energy is the operator of the Dussafu permit and Panoro Energy is its partner.
Panoro informed on Monday that drilling had started on the Hibiscus Updip prospect, using the Borr Norve jack-up drilling rig. This is the first well in an intensive six-well campaign planned on Dussafu during 2019 and 2020.
The Hibiscus Updip well (DHIBM-1) is located about 56 km offshore Gabon in 116 m water depth. The well is planned as a vertical well to test the highly productive Gamba and Dentale reservoirs.
The DHIBM-1 well is also located approximately 1.5 km southwest of the Hibiscus well (HIBM-1) drilled by Arco in 1991 based on 2D seismic data, and which found good quality Gamba reservoir with live oil shows. The new well is positioned to intersect the Gamba at what is believed, based on 3D seismic data acquired by Panoro in 2013, to be an updip position from the HIBM-1 well.
Following the DHIBM-1 well, the rig will move on to drill four consecutive horizontal production wells at the Tortue field, followed by an additional exploration well in 2020.
The location of the 2020 exploration well will be based on 3D seismic data that is being currently re-processed with the latest techniques. Based on the results of the processing and exploration wells, a further two additional exploration wells may be drilled once the initial six-well campaign has been completed, Panoro stated.
Salloum West Prospect
Panoro added that, in Tunisia, planning is underway for drilling the Salloum West prospect towards the end of the year.
Advanced dialogue with contractors, regulators and the National oil company, ETAP, is underway and continues to progress. Simultaneously a reprocessing of the vintage seismic around the Salloum area is being undertaken, the company said.
John Hamilton, CEO of Panoro Energy, said: “We have a very exciting 12 months ahead of us with two material exploration wells to be drilled in 2019, first the Hibiscus Updip well now spudded on the Dussafu permit in Gabon and the Panoro-operated Salloum West well in Tunisia expected later this year.
“The Hibiscus Updip prospect has been matured using 3D seismic and has the potential, if successful, to add substantial resources which would be brought into production alongside the Ruche and Ruche North East fields as part of Phase 3 on the Dussafu permit. Our exploration activities are complemented by production growth activities, with the upcoming subsequent development drilling at Tortue and ongoing workover activities in Tunisia.”