Deepwater exploration is heating off Israel, with new licenses awarded amid reports of a significant gas discovery off the hydrocarbon-poor nation.
Samedan Mediterranean Sea, a subsidiary of Noble Affiliates Inc., Ardmore, Okla., and its partners gauged a flow rate of 30 MMcfd in the Noa 1 wildcat in the Mediterranean Sea off southern Israel.
Meanwhile, BG Exploration & Production Ltd. was awarded three deepwater exploration blocks off Israel, which it is pursuing with an eye on the potential for downstream gas projects. The BG blocks are near the acreage containing the Noa 1 strike.
Gas discovery
The Noa 1, tested through a 3/4-in. choke with 2,200 psi flowing tubing pressure, is capable of producing higher flow rates with the right completion equipment, Noble said.
"Commercial significance of the gas discovery will be based upon further evaluation of the test results, possible additional drilling, and estimates of development costs," Noble said.
The well was drilled to a depth of 7,150 ft in 2,555 ft of water about 23 miles off the city of Ashdod. Noble said the prospect is anomalous with gas fields recently discovered off Egypt`s Nile Delta (see map). When initial plans for the well were disclosed, Noble said the well was projected to cost about $10 million, including testing.
The initial participation agreement called for Samedan to pay 53.3% of the well cost in order to earn a 40% working interest in the licenses.
Interest owners are: operator Samedan, 40%; Avner Exploration LP and Delek Drilling LP, 25% each; and RB Mediterranean Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of R&B Falcon Corp., 10%.
The group also owns similar working interests in eight other exploration licenses covering 787,277 gross acres off Israel. When Samedan and partners first entered into an exploration participation agreement covering the Israeli offshore acreage, the agreement covered nine licenses comprising about 890,000 acres in 2,500-5,000 ft of water.
BG blocks
BG`s three adjacent license areas have a combined area of 10,000 sq km and lie near the Egyptian offshore boundary. BG has recently made a string of gas finds off Egypt and plans to distribute gas along the Nile Valley (OGJ, Apr. 27, 1998, p. 28).
BG is obliged to acquire 500 line-km of 2D seismic data on the blocks over 18 months. The agreement then gives BG first refusal on a 3-year exploration license, with an option to extend by 7 years, which would lead to a 30-year production-sharing agreement.
A BG official told OGJ the company sees the offshore licenses very much in terms of the possibilities for supplying Israel`s downstream gas market. BG has already prequalified for the development of a natural gas grid in Israel, the award of which is anticipated later this year.
"It was in the context of this plan that we were invited to bid for the offshore blocks," said the official. "We see our role in Israel as complementary to what we are doing in Egypt."
BG hopes to find enough gas off Israel to help fuel Israel`s developing industrial sector. The company is also looking at the possibilities of importing gas to Israel from Egypt.
