PetroTal Corp. completed its first horizontal well and spudded a development well in Bretana oil field on Block 95 in Peru (100% working interest).
The company completed the BN 95-4H (4H) horizontal well on time and under budget by $3 million using new technology to maximize oil production, the company reported. The first horizontal well in the field, it had a 500-m lateral completion using autonomous inflow control device valves to maximize oil production. Initial production during the first 4 days of production was 6,200 bo/d.
The 4H well was drilled updip towards the crest of the structure and provided data to confirm management’s analysis of the reservoir. Additional well data, including sustained rates, will be reported with the company’s quarterly financial filings and operations update in November.
Bretana reached new record production of more than 8,000 bo/d, with 3 of 5 wells online. Current production from the field is 7,800 bo/d.
The company also spudded its second horizontal development well, BN 95-5H (5H). The company allocated $14 million of an additional $19 million capital expenditure budget approved for the year to drill and complete the well, which will target updip oil to the northern portion of the structure. Production from the well, which will be the company’s second horizontal well once completed, is expected to help the company achieve a targeted exit rate of 10,000 b/d of oil at yearend.
The 5H well also will be completed with autonomous inflow control device valves in the lateral section. The well is expected to come online simultaneously with the facilities commissioning at yearend.
A second water disposal well is planned in January 2020 as part of a capital budget once approved by the board.
During the third quarter, PetroTal upgraded the production facilities, expanding production capacity to more than 7,500 b/d of oil. The company plans to commission phase one of its central production facilities for Bretana (CPF-1) in December, which will increase full field production capacity to more than 10,000 bo/d. Incremental implementation of phase two of the production facilities (CPF-2) is planned for July 2020. When CPF-2 is fully integrated by yearend 2020, PetroTal will have the capacity to produce as much as 20,000 bo/d. Facility expansion is being implemented on a modular basis to time facilities with well completions to most efficiently deploy capital.
The company plans to spend $5 million to bring additional production facilities to the field by mid-2020, as an interim step to installing CPF-2 by yearend 2020. PetroTal expects the interim capital spent will yield an additional 5,000 b/d of capacity in mid-2020.
The company produced 4,800 bo/d in the fiscal third quarter and projects fourth quarter production above 6,500 bo/d.
