Oryx rebrands, sets $51-million budget for Hawler development

Rebranded as Forza Petroleum Ltd., Oryx Petroleum Corp. Ltd., Calgary, will dedicate its 2021 budgeted capital expenditures of $51 million exclusively to the Hawler license area in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

The planned work program involves drilling five new wells into proven, producing reservoirs and reservoirs still being appraised in Demir Dagh, Zey Gawra, and Banan fields, completing a previously drilled well in Ain al Safra field for further evaluation, and installing a gathering system to eliminate trucking in the western part of the license area.  Operations at Banan field restarted in July following improvement in oil price after being temporarily suspended (OGJ Online, June 23, 2020).

The operator detailed the planned work program and name change in a Dec. 8 media release.

A new well targeting the Tertiary reservoir in Zey Gawra field is not expected to spud before January 2021 as the drilling rig intended for the project has not been released by the current operator. Renovation of a previously constructed well pad in the field was completed in this year’s third quarter.

Completion of the full budgeted program is dependent on available funding from one or a combination of increased revenue from oil sales resulting from higher than forecast Brent crude oil prices or production, settlement of past due receivables by the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and additional funding from third parties.

Forza Petroleum operates the Hawler license with a 65% participating interest.

Average oil production for November 2020 is 11,100 b/d (participating interest 7,200 b/d). During the month, leased artificial lift equipment used to produce the Banan-4 and Banan-3 wells was demobilized and replaced by a purchased pump in the Banan-4 well.