Pantheon Resources spuds Alaska North Slope well

Pantheon Resources PLC has spudded the Talitha #A well in Alaska’s North Slope ahead of schedule on Jan. 13, 2021. The well is about 8 miles west of the Dalton Highway and Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) and 4 miles from the Pipeline State #1 well, drilled by ARCO in 1988, which confirmed the presence of movable hydrocarbons in the objective horizons.

The well will target the shallowest Shelf Margin Deltaic horizon as the primary objective and will also drill through secondary objectives including Slope Fan System, Basin Floor Fan, and Kuparuk horizons. All four of these formations were previously penetrated by the Pipeline State #1 wellbore on Pantheon’s acreage and all were confirmed as oil bearing. Drilling is planned to a total vertical depth of about 10,000 ft.

Drilling and testing operations at the well must be completed prior to the onset of spring when the ice road begins to thaw, usually near the end of March. Pantheon intends to make full use of the available drilling window, undertaking drilling and testing operations if weather permits.

Pantheon estimates the well will target a potential of about 1 billion bbl recoverable oil across multiple stacked (primary and secondary) objectives. An independent expert’s report was completed on the updip section of the Shelf Margin Deltaic, and confirmed a prospective resource of 302 million bbl recoverable oil. Formal delineation of the ultimate potential of the lower, secondary targets requires additional analysis.

Pantheon acquired 100% interest in about 66,000 acres in the State of Alaska’s North Slope Areawide Lease Sale. The new leases are positioned in two areas contiguous to the company’s current acreage on the northwestern, western, and eastern boundaries. Pantheon now holds about 160,000 contiguous acres.

Pantheon has 89.2% working interest in Talitha #A.