Repsol makes oil discovery in Trinidad and Tobago
Repsol has made a new hydrocarbons discovery in the Teak field, offshore Trinidad and Tobago, in the TSP block east of the island of Trinidad. The find in the TB14 well has upgraded the northern portion of the Teak B field that was not known to exist before. The newly-discovered area is estimated to contain over 40 million barrels of oil in place, which increases the field's current reserves, extends its productive life and adds new output.
Repsol operates the field with a 70% interest, partnered by co-venturers Petroleum Company of Trinidad and Tobago (Petrotrin) and The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago (NGC), with a 15% stake each.
The TB14 well, which has produced 1,200 barrels of oil a day in testing, adds to the start-up in June of the TB13 well, which added 1,384 bopd to the field's output. The new wells add 24% to the block's existing production, which averaged 10,900 bopd during 2013. Repsol and its partners expect to complete at least two more wells in 2014, with further drilling scheduled in years to come.
Drilling programs in Trinidad and Tobago have benefitted from fiscal reforms implemented by the government in recent years to incentivize exploration and production in mature fields.
Repsol has been operating in Trinidad and Tobago since 1995, and has boosted its exploratory activity in recent years with more than 50 discoveries since 2008. At the end of 2013, Repsol has hydrocarbons reserves in Trinidad and Tobago totaling 325.3 million barrels of oil equivalent.
Goodrich reveals TMS well result
Goodrich Petroleum Corp. has completed its Beech Grove 94H-1 (66.7% WI) well in East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana in the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale. The well has achieved a peak 24-hour production rate to date of approximately 740 boe/d, comprised of 672 barrels of oil and 412 Mcf of gas on a 19/64 inch choke. The Beech Grove 94H-1 well was drilled with an approximate 6,000 foot lateral, landed in the company's lower target and was completed with 21 frac stages.
The company has commenced completion operations on its SLC, Inc. 81H-1 (66.7% WI) well in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana, and its Denkmann 33-28H-2 (75% WI) and Bates 25-24H-1 (97.6% WI) wells in Amite County, Mississippi. The company continues with drilling operations on its CMR-Foster Creek 24-13H-1 (84.7% WI) well in Wilkinson County, Mississippi. At press time, the company expected to spud its Spears 31-6H #1 (73.9% WI) well in Amite County, Mississippi and its CMR-Foster Creek 31-22H #1 (89.5% WI) well in Wilkinson County, Mississippi.
The company is currently running three rigs in the TMS with plans to go to as many as five rigs by the end of the year pending continued success. The company has in excess of 300,000 net acres in the play.
Roxi Petroleum Makes Discovery at BNG Contract Area in Kazakhstan
Roxi Petroleum plc, the Central Asian oil and gas company with a focus on Kazakhstan, reported a discovery at its flagship BNG asset in Western Kazakhstan.
The BNG Contract Area is located in the west of Kazakhstan 24.8 miles (40 kilometers) southeast of Tengiz on the edge of the Mangistau Oblast, covering an area of 1,561 square kilometers of which 602.7 square miles (1,376 square kilometers) has 3D seismic coverage acquired in 2009 and 2010.
Roxi has a 58.41% interest in the BNG Contract Area.
Well A5, the first deep well on the BNG Contract Area, with a planned total depth of 15,420 feet (4,700 meters) is targeting principally the middle Carboniferous formation at 14,402 feet (4,390 meters) of the South Emba sub-basin. Oil and gas shows have been detected at a depth of 14,212 feet (4,332 meters).
Core samples will be taken to determine the oil bearing horizon.
Central Spuds Unconventional Gas Well in Queensland
Central Petroleum Ltd. commenced drilling Sunday, July 20, at the Whiteley-1 unconventional gas exploration well in ATP912 of the Southern Georgina Basin, Queensland, Australia.
Whiteley-1 is the first of a program of unconventional gas exploration wells operated by Central (via subsidiary Merlin Energy Pty Ltd in partnership with international energy company Total) and is to be drilled using Enerdrill Rig 2.
The primary objective is the Lower Arthur Creek Formation, which will be fully cored and sampled for gas desorption and reservoir properties, in addition to an extensive logging program to evaluate the hydrocarbon resource potential.
The second well in the program, Gaudi-1, is scheduled to spud in mid-September 2014 in ATP909.
Each well is expected to be drilled to a total depth of approximately 8,202 to 9,514 feet (2,500 to 2,900 meters) respectively, will be extensively cored, and are estimated to be drilled and cased in approximately 60 days.
"There has been a lot of work leading to the spudding of this first well in the Southern Georgina by Central and Total. Central remains hopeful that this program will herald the opening of a whole new gas province in Queensland which will help meet the east coast's future gas requirements. Central acknowledges the help and expertise of our joint venture partner Total in this exciting endeavour", said Richard Cottee, managing director of Central.
Separately, Central announced the Dingo Pipeline Licence No. 30 (PL30) had been agreed with the Northern Territory Department of Mines and Energy, which had previously granted Petroleum Production Licence L7.
On July 10 the Department of Mines and Energy also approved the Dingo Gas Field Preliminary Field Development Plan and the Dingo Gas Field Preliminary Reservoir Management Plan.
Authority to clear and grade has been granted and site works have commenced.
"The commencement of the site works for this strategic pipeline is a major milestone and signifies the start of Central being a significant player in the NT gas market," said Cottee.
BOEM to offer 21M acres in August GOM lease sale
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) bureau will offer more than 21 million acres offshore Texas for oil and gas exploration and development in a lease sale that will include all available unleased areas in the Western Gulf of Mexico Planning Area.
Western Gulf of Mexico Lease Sale 238 will be held in New Orleans on August 20. BOEM estimates the proposed lease sale could result in the production of 116 to 200 million barrels of oil and 538 to 938 billion cubic feet of natural gas.
Sale 238 will include approximately 4,026 blocks, covering roughly 21.6 million acres, located from nine to 250 miles offshore, in water depths ranging from 16 to more than 10,975 feet (5 to 3,346 meters).
BOEM will offer blocks located, or partially located, within the three statute mile US - Mexico Boundary Area, as well as blocks within the former Western Gap that lie within 1.4 nautical miles north of the Continental Shelf Boundary (1.4-nautical mile buffer) between the United States and Mexico, subject to the terms of the US - Mexico Transboundary Hydrocarbon Agreement.
Projected Marcellus growth accounts for half of total growth in six major US shale gas basins
According to the EIA, Marcellus shale gas production in August is expected to reach 15.48 bcf/d, an increase of 247,000 Mcf/d from the previous month's level of 15.23 bcf/d. The growth in Marcellus production levels accounts for 58% of the total growth in August of the six major US shale gas basins. Texas's Eagle Ford Shale basin production will push above 6.5 bcf/d, an increase of 79,000 Mcf/d from the previous month, according to the EIA. Haynesville Shale production in August is expected to grow by 100,000 Mcf/d to 6.73 bcf/d.
Leni hits additional oil from Goudron Development Well
At the fourth of its planned 30 new development wells at the Goudron Field in Trinidad, Leni Oil & Gas's GY-667, the third well from the drill pad, has intersected 187 feet of net oil pay in the Goudron sandstones based on analysis of the electric logging.
The well has been cased to a depth 1,905 feet in order to isolate the Goudron Sandstone and the high pressure Upper Gros Morne gas intervals and is now drilling ahead to the primary Gros Morne Sandstone oil target which is expected at approximately 2,180 feet true-vertical depth (TVD).
Well GY-667 has a planned total depth (TD) of 3,600 feet TVD which is equivalent to 3,840 feet measured depth (MD) at a bottom-hole location that is approximately 590 feet south east of the surface location. The well will also investigate the presence of reservoir potential of the Lower Cruse at the location.
Once TD is reached the well will be logged and cased ready for completion as a production well. The fourth well from the current pad, GY-668, will be drilled immediately following the end of drilling operations on GY-667.
Denton city council rejects partial ban on hydraulic fracturing
City council members in Denton, Texas rejected a bid that would have made it the first city in the state to ban further permitting of hydraulic fracturing in the community. The city of Denton sits on the Barnett shale play. Denton city council members voted down the petition 5-2 after eight hours of public testimony, sending the proposal to a public ballot in November. City leaders introduced a temporary ban on new hydraulic fracturing permits in May after opponents to the practice delivered a petition containing about 2,000 signatures. The temporary ban is set to expire in September.
Premier brings offshore Vietnam oil field on stream
Premier Oil Group, which includes Australia's Santos Ltd., has brought its Dua oil field on stream. The field is situated off the coast of Vietnam. Dua is a three-well subsea development tied back to the nearby Chim Sao facilities on Block 12W of the Nam Con Son Basin.
Gross production from the three wells is expected to be 8,000 bpd for the first year of production. The oil will be processed through the floating production, storage, and offloading vessel stationed at Chim Sao with sufficient capacity to handle the output from both fields.
Operator Premier holds 53.12% interest, Santos 31.88%, and PetroVietnam 15%.
Shell adds third major discovery to Norphlet play in Gulf of Mexico
Shell reported its third major discovery in the Norphlet play in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico with the successful Rydberg exploration well. The Rydberg well is located 75 miles (120 kilometers) offshore in the Mississippi Canyon Block 525 in 7,479 feet (2,280 meters) of water. It was drilled to a total depth of 26,371 feet (8,038 meters) and encountered more than 400 feet (122 meters) of net oil pay.
Shell expects the resource base to be approximately 100MMboe. Together with the Appomattox and Vicksburg discoveries, this brings the total potential Norphlet discoveries to over 700MMboe.
This is the first discovery for the partnership of Shell (operator, interest 57.2%); Ecopetrol America Inc. (28.5%); and Nexen (14.3%), a wholly owned affiliate of CNOOC Ltd. The discovery is within 10 miles (16 kilometers) of the planned Appomattox development and the 2013 Vicksburg discovery (Shell, operator, 75%; and Nexen, 25%).
Shell and Nexen are following up the Rydberg discovery with an exploratory well at Gettysburg, located in Desoto Canyon Block 398 which is also within 10 miles (16 kilometers) of the planned Appomattox Development.
Beach Energy Spuds Elliston-2 Oil Development Well in Cooper Basin
Cooper Energy Ltd. reported that Elliston-2, a vertical oil development well located in PPL 249 on the western flank of the Cooper Basin, South Australia was spud Tuesday July 22.
Elliston-2, located 820 feet (250 meters) south-southwest of Elliston-1, is expected to drill to a total depth of approximately 5,429 feet (1,655 meters) to accelerate production and improve recovery from the Namur Sandstone reservoir.
Cooper Energy holds a 25% interest in PPL 249 with the balance held by the Operator, Beach Energy Limited.
First Oil Commences at Bentara Field Offshore Sarawak
Malaysia's national oil and gas company Petroliam Nasional Berhd (Petronas) said July 23 that Bentara field in the Balai Cluster Risk Service Contract (RSC) area located offshore Sarawak, Malaysia has achieved its first oil production May 25. The field, which is expected to produce more than 1,000 bopd, is being developed and operated by BC Petroleum Sdn Bhd. The Bentara field is the second field in the Balai Cluster, which successfully achieved oil production after Balai field on Nov. 6, 2013.
The first oil production from Bentara field also marks the fourth successful oil production from marginal field development projects undertaken by Petronas under the RSC petroleum arrangement. The RSC was awarded in Aug. 2011 to BC Petroleum Sdn Bhd, a joint venture company consisting of Roc Oil, Dialog Group, and Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd.
BRIEFS
Federal, Indian lands
"The federal Gulf of Mexico produced 69% of the federal and Indian lands crude oil total in FY 2013. New Mexico, North Dakota, and Wyoming were the next largest crude oil producers on federal and Indian lands. Crude oil production on federal and Indian lands represents most of the total (public and private) crude oil production in New Mexico, Wyoming, and Utah."— EIA analyst Robert Schmitt
Prolific Permian
The Permian Basin in Texas and New Mexico is the nation's most prolific oil producing area. Six formations within the basin have provided the bulk of Permian's 60% increase in oil output since 2007. Crude oil production in the Permian Basin has increased from a low point of 850,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) in 2007 to 1,350,000 bbl/d in 2013. The recent increase in crude oil production is largely concentrated in six low-permeability formations that include the Spraberry, Wolfcamp, Bone Spring, Glorieta, Yeso, and Delaware formations.
M&A cost increases
Since 1Q09, domestic upstream merger and acquisition costs (announced corporate and asset transactions > $10 million with proved reserves) have increased by 17% and 14% annually when measured by proved reserves in the ground and producing units, respectively, according to analysts with Riverstone Holdings LLC.
BOEM sets path for Atlantic Coast survey activities
A plan allowing companies to assess oil resources off the Atlantic Coast was approved by the Obama administration July 18. The plan, detailed by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in February, outlines mitigation measures that would be required before seismic testing could occur.
"The bureau's decision reflects a carefully analyzed and balanced approach that will allow us to increase our understanding of potential offshore resources while protecting the human, marine, and coastal environments," said acting BOEM director Walter D. Cruickshank.
