Melrose adds reserves, nears start of Galata gas field off Bulgaria

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Jan. 26 -- Melrose Resources PLC, London, announced a 32% increase in proved reserves to 65 bcf at its Galata gas field on the Black Sea shelf off Bulgaria.

Startup of Galata, the area's first field to begin producing, was delayed to late February from January by a December storm that damaged a pipelay barge with 5.3 km of pipeline still to lay.

The first two platform wells each flowed 30 MMcfd of gas at 1,500 psi wellhead pressure, and the No. 2 well confirmed an extension of the Maastrichtian-Paleocene carbonate gas reservoir on the Galata structure's northern fault block, leading to the reserves markup. Proved plus probable reserves are estimated to have risen to 90 bcf from 80 bcf.

Galata field is 22 km from shore in 35 m of water on Block 91-III, Melrose 100% working interest. Deliveries of as much as 53 MMcfd to state distributor Bulgargaz are to be made via an onshore gas treatment plant and a 58 km, 12 in. pipeline from Varna to Provadia.

Interpretation of 470 km of infill seismic data on southern Block 91-III revealed seven structures with similar reserve potential as Galata in the Galata producing horizon and confirmed the prospectivity of a 30+ km long Oligocene channel that trends eastward from the field. A structure in the channel could hold more than 1 tcf recoverable, the company said.

After further processing, Melrose plans to pick the location for an exploration well in the third quarter of 2004 and another well for 2005.

Melrose also holds adjacent Block Kaliakra 99 east and south of Galata, in an earlier stage of exploration.