Perenco makes pre-salt oil discovery offshore Congo-Brazzaville
Perenco has discovered oil with an exploratory well offshore Congo-Brazzaville, raising the prospect of a new geological play, the company said on Monday.
The shallow water Pointe Noire Grand Fond (PNGF) Sud license of the privately owned French independent, whose portfolio is mainly weighted toward West Africa, said the well, Tchinem 1-01, targeted a deeper zone beneath the Tchibeli North East field.
The pre-salt Vandji play, where the oil was discovered, is underlain by a layer of salt, making seismic imaging and drilling difficult.
Top reservoir was encountered at 3420mMD (-3024mTVDMSL) and a 205 m gross section of Vandji was drilled before the well TD’d in the basement at 3630mMD (-3229mTVDMSL). Good oil and gas shows were recorded on entry into the reservoir and a 75 m oil column was interpreted on logs. A 7-inch liner was run and two intervals totaling 62 m were selected for perforation. A comingled test of these zones produced at 2,000 bopd on natural flow before a 24hr PBU to help confirm connected volumes.
The well was drilled from the Dagda MODPU (Mobile Offshore Drilling and Production Unit) which was moved onto the Tchibeli NE field at the end of August, first to drill and then produce.
“This exploration discovery by Perenco Congo and its partners is a potential play opener in the pre-salt in Congo, and we are pleased to have also identified a number of other Vandji leads on the acreage,” Rory Keith, Perenco group exploration manager, said. “The safe and successful drilling of this challenging well, on time and within budget, is testament to the efforts of Perenco’s exploration team in London and the excellence of the drilling team in Pointe Noire. We look forward to continuing to work with our partners in support of the Republic of Congo.”
Partners on the PNGF Sud License: Perenco Congo (Operator, 40%), SNPC (15%), Hemla E&P Congo S.A. (20%), Continent Congo S.A. (10%), Africa Oil & Gas Corporation (10%) and Petro Congo (5%).
