Rocksource Spins Bit at Phoenix Prospect

- Rocksource Spins Bit at Phoenix Prospect

Thursday, September 08, 2011
Rocksource ASA

Rocksource announced that the drilling rig Borgland Dolphin has commenced drilling on the Phoenix prospect in PL 559 in the Norwegian Sea.

The PL 559 partnership consists of Rocksource (Operator and 60 percent working interest), VNG (30 percent) and Skagen44 (10 percent).

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

Statoil Primes Bit for North Sea Drilling

- Statoil Primes Bit for North Sea Drilling

Friday, August 19, 2011
Norwegian Petroleum Directorate

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has granted Statoil Petroleum AS a drilling permit for well 15/8-2, cf. Section 8 of the Resource Management Regulations.

Well 15/8-2 will be drilled from the COSLPioneer drilling facility, at position 58°24'55.1"N 01°32'49.90"E. COSLPioneer is a new drilling facility that was built in China. The facility was docked at Sandnes this summer to be prepared for its first assignment on the Norwegian shelf.

The drilling program for well 15/8-2 concerns the drilling of a wildcat well in production license 303. Statoil Petroleum AS is the operator with a 100 percent ownership interest.

The area in this license consists of a part of block 15/2 and parts of blocks 15/3, 15/5, 15/6 and 15/8. The well will be drilled about ten kilometers west of the Sleipner Vest field in the central part of the North Sea.

Production license 303 was awarded on December 12, 2003 (APA 2003). This is the seventh well to be drilled in the license area.

The permit is contingent upon the operator securing all other permits and consents required by other authorities prior to commencing the drilling activity.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

Centrica Spins Bit at N. Sea Butch Prospect

- Centrica Spins Bit at N. Sea Butch Prospect

Monday, August 15, 2011
Faroe Petroleum plc

Faroe Petroleum announced that drilling has commenced on the Butch prospect (Faroe 15%) located in the Norwegian North Sea.

The Butch prospect (block 8/10) is situated in the Norwegian North Sea, some seven kilometers east of the Ula field, 10 kilometers north east of the Tambar field and some 20 kilometers north of the Gyda field. The prospect is a stratigraphic pinch-out trap resting on the side of a salt dome and the primary target is the upper Jurassic Ula Formation which is the producing reservoir in the Ula, Tambar and Gyda fields.

The drilling operation, to be undertaken by Centrica as operator using the Maersk Guardian drilling rig, is expected to be completed in 4Q 2011.

Licenses PL405 and 405BS containing the Butch prospect were awarded to the Company in the APA 2006 licensing round. The other equity holders in these licenses are Centrica 40% (operator), Suncor ASA 30%, Spring Energy Norway AS 15%. In March 2009 the Company assigned a 15% interest in these licenses to Spring Energy in return for a partial carry on the well.

Graham Stewart, Chief Executive of Faroe Petroleum, commented, "We are pleased to announce the spudding of the first of our three near term Norwegian exploration wells, part of our fully funded drilling program. The Butch prospect offers an exciting opportunity to test a good prospect in the Jurassic Ula Formation, which has proved so successful in the nearby Ula, Tambar and Gyda fields .

"Elsewhere in our portfolio, drilling is also ongoing on the Fulla prospect West of Shetland, which is our first operated well, and for which results are expected to be announced later this month."

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

Bowleven Spins Bit Offshore Cameroon

- Bowleven Spins Bit Offshore Cameroon

Thursday, August 11, 2011
BowLeven plc

Bowleven has commenced on the Sapele-3 well, Douala Basin, offshore Cameroon, with the Sapphire Driller jackup rig.

The Sapele-3 well, located around sixteen kilometres North West of the Sapele-1 location, is targeting the Tertiary interval and is to be drilled to an estimated target depth of circa 3,550 meters in water depths of around 30 meters.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

ATP Primes Bit for Shimshon Prospect Offshore Israel

- ATP Primes Bit for Shimshon Prospect Offshore Israel

Monday, August 08, 2011
ATP O&G Corp.

ATP O&G announced an operations update for its properties in the Gulf of Mexico, the North Sea and Offshore Israel. Company-wide production continues to be 24-25 MMBoe/d.

Clipper

ATP commenced well operations with the Diamond Ocean Victory drilling vessel at the Green Canyon (“GC”) Block 300 (“Clipper”) #2 ST#1 during the second quarter of 2011. In July 2011, ATP successfully completed and flow tested the well at 45.6 MMcf per day plus condensate of 4,656 Bbls per day. The well is scheduled to be placed on production in the middle of 2012 after completion of the pipeline and tie-back to existing infrastructure.

After completion of the GC #2 ST #1, the Diamond Ocean Victory will move to the GC #4 well, re-enter and sidetrack the well to the targeted oil zone. All required permit applications have been submitted to the BOEMRE.

ATP operates Clipper and presently owns a 100% working interest.

Gomez Hub

During June 2011, ATP completed and returned to production the Mississippi Canyon (“MC”) Block 711 #5 well bringing to six the number of wells producing at Gomez. The development drilling plan (“DOCD”) for MC 711 #9 and MC 711 #10 were deemed submitted to the BOEMRE on June 8, 2011. Upon approval of the DOCD and the well permits, ATP expects to commence drilling at MC 711 #9 and #10 with first production expected mid-2012. The exploration plan has also been submitted for MC Block 710, a block immediately adjacent to MC 711 which displays similar seismic and technical characteristics to MC Block 711. Original proved reserve estimates of the Gomez Hub accounted for 14.8 MMBoe. Since commencement of production through June 2011 the Gomez Hub has already produced gross volumes of 24.8 MMBoe (66% oil).

ATP operates the deepwater Gomez Hub, has a 100% working interest in MC 711, 710 and 755, a 75% working interest in MC 754 and owns 51% of the ATP Innovator through a partnership with GE.

Telemark Hub

The MC Block 941 A-1 (#3) continues to produce as expected from the commingled C and D sands. Since inception, October 2010 through June 2011, the well has produced gross volumes of 2.8 MMBoe (85% oil and 15% gas). Based on the strong performance of the #3 well to-date, ATP expects to recover from the #3 and #4 wells all of the reserves that were initially projected from the C and D sands. Current water production of approximately 950 barrels per day is from the D sand which is to be expected since the downdip well, originally drilled by Vastar, was wet. Water cut is expected to increase until the D sand in the well, which represents less than 2% of the total proved and probable reserves of the Telemark Hub, is depleted, at which time the D sand sleeve will be closed. The ATP Titan, the floating production facility that services the Telemark Hub, has the capacity to process 25,000 Bbls of oil/day, 50 MMcf of gas/day and 15,000 Bbls of water/day.

Currently the MC Block 941 A-2 (#4) well is being completed; productive intervals in the C and D sands have been perforated and independently frac-packed. All remaining permits to complete this well have been approved, and remaining operations include running tubing, reconfiguring to allow flow testing the well and turning the A-2 to sales. First sales from the MC Block 941 A-2 are expected in the third quarter.

The MC Block 942 #2 well, which is already drilled to approximately 12,000 feet, will be drilled to total depth upon approval of the drilling permit by the BOEMRE and following the completion of the MC Block 941 A-2 well. ATP plans to complete drilling the well in the fourth quarter and expects first production by year-end.

ATP operates the deepwater Telemark Hub with a 100% working interest and owns 100% of the ATP Titan and associated pipelines and infrastructure.

UK North Sea

During the second quarter, the work on the Octabuoy floating production facility continued in the shipyard. Hull construction is on schedule and completion is expected early in 2012. Platform topsides are under construction in China (the utility module) and the US (the processing module). Upon completion of the processing module it will be shipped to China to be joined with the utility module. The hull and topsides will then sail to Norway for final commissioning and on to the Cheviot field in the North Sea where production is expected to begin in 2014.

In addition to Cheviot, ATP is working on its Skipper and Blythe projects in the UK North Sea. At Skipper, an oil project, an appraisal well to test production rates is scheduled for next year. At Blythe, predominately a gas project, discussions are ongoing to determine the most economic offtake route for the gas from this field. Development at Blythe is expected to commence in 2013. Skipper is located in the central UK North Sea in water depths of approximately 300 feet. Blythe is located in the Southern Gas Basin in water depths of approximately 100 feet. ATP operates both Skipper and Blythe and has a 50% working interest ownership in each.

Israel Expansion

During June 2011, through its subsidiary ATP East Med B.V., ATP acquired interests in three deepwater licenses in the Mediterranean Sea offshore Israel. ATP will operate its licenses, Shimshon, Daniel East and Daniel West, with a working interest of 40%. In the Mediterranean Sea, ATP licenses relate to exploratory prospects where drilling has occurred nearby and hydrocarbons have been discovered by others. ATP capital investment in the Mediterranean Sea is expected to be minimal for the remainder of 2011 as ATP prepares its exploratory and development plans for drilling in 2012.

ATP East Med, as operator of the licenses, has assumed the drilling contract with Transocean Drilling Israel Ltd. for the Sedco Express drilling unit at the Shimshon location where it anticipates initial drilling during the second quarter 2012. ATP expects to spend between $24 and $29 million during 2012 related to the initial exploratory well on the Shimshon license for its 40% working interest.

ATP notes that Isramco Negev, its partner in Shimshon, on March 6, 2011 reported that it received an independent reservoir engineering evaluation from Lockwood & Associates estimating gross potential natural gas reserves at Shimshon. According to Isramco Negev, "Lockwood & Associates considers the calculated assessment of the total geological and geophysical exploration probability of success of 20 percent to be reasonable. Lockwood said its high estimate was for 3.4 TCF, the low estimate was 1.5 TCF and its best estimate was 2.3 TCF."

Additional information on the Daniel East and Daniel West licenses will be provided as drilling and exploration plans are approved. ATP East Med is also party to two other licenses in offshore Israel which are awaiting approval by the Israeli Ministry of National Infrastructure. ATP continues to evaluate acquiring other licenses in the Mediterranean Sea.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

Det norske to Spin Bit in Southern North Sea

- Det norske to Spin Bit in Southern North Sea

Friday, August 05, 2011
Det norske oljeselskap ASA

Det norske received Petroleum Safety Authority Norway's (PSA) consent to drill the Ulvetanna prospect, with exploration well 3/4-2S, yesterday. The prospect is located in block 3/4 in production license 356 in the southern North Sea.

The well will be drilled with the jack-up rig Maersk Guardian. Planned start-up is in the end of the third quarter of this year.

The main objective of the drilling is oil in the Ekofisk- and Tor formations. The well will be drilled to a depth of approximately 3,050 meters. Water depth in the area is 51 meters.

Det norske is the operator of the license with a 60 percent stake. Repsol entered the license last year, and has 40 percent stake. The license was awarded in APA 2005.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

Salamander Spins Bit Offshore Vietnam

- Salamander Spins Bit Offshore Vietnam

Wednesday, August 03, 2011
Salamander Energy plc

Salamander announced the spud of the Cat Ba-1X ("101-CB-1X") exploration well in Block 101-100/04, offshore northern Vietnam.

The 101-CB-1X well will be drilled to a depth of approximately 1,900 meters. The primary objective is a Palaeozoic carbonate, (buried hill) structure with secondary objectives in the overlying Tertiary clastic section. The mean gross pre-drill estimate of prospective recoverable resource is approximately 100 MMbo. The well will be drilled by the Aquamarine Driller jack-up rig in a water depth of 49 meters. It is expected to take approximately 25 days to complete on a dry hole basis.

Salamander holds a 30% operated interest in Block 101-100/04, subject to final government approval of the farm-out of 20% interest to JX-Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Corporation announced in May 2011.

James Menzies, Chief Executive of Salamander, said, "The Cat Ba prospect is an analogue to the neighboring Ham Rong Oil field that was declared commercial in 2010, both located in the Hai Phong sub-basin. We have reduced our financial exposure to the 101-CB-1X well through farm down, but remain highly leveraged to the upside in the event of success."

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

Statoil to Spin Bit at Visund Sor

- Statoil to Spin Bit at Visund Sor

Monday, July 25, 2011
Petroleum Safety Authority Norway

Statoil has received consent to use the Ocean Vanguard mobile facility in the northern part of the North Sea.

The consent relates to drilling of three production wells on Visund Sør. The plan is to partially complete all three wells, 34/8-V-4 BY1H/BY2H, 34/8-V-3 H, 34/8-V-1 BY1H/BY2H, with Ocean Vanguard.

Visund Sør is located approx. nine kilometers southwest of the Visund field, and approx. 125 kilometers from land, Værlandet in Askvoll, Sogn og Fjordane.

The earliest possible start date for the operation on Visund Sør is in the beginning of August 2011. The operation has an expected duration of 300 days.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

Salmander Primes Bit for Cat Ba Prospect

- Salmander Primes Bit for Cat Ba Prospect

Friday, July 15, 2011
Salamander Energy plc


Salamander announced the completion of drilling operations on the Dao Ruang structure, Block L15/50, onshore Northeast Thailand.

The Dao Ruang-3 appraisal well ("DR-3") has been drilled to a total depth of 1,800 meters true vertical depth sub-sea in order to test the pre-Tertiary carbonate section on the northern flank of the Dao Ruang structure. The well intersected a number of zones of interest with associated gas shows and a full suite of wire-line logs have been acquired. Analysis of all available well data suggests that DR-3 would have limited potential as a producer from the current wellbore. Due to this, and wellbore stability reasons, a decision has been made not to flow test the well. The DR-3 well is currently in the process of being plugged and abandoned.

Meanwhile, in Vietnam, the Aquamarine Driller jack up rig that will be used to drill the Cat Ba-1X prospect in Block 101/100-04, Offshore Northern Vietnam, is due to imminently commence mobilization to the well site. The Cat Ba-1X well is expected to spud before the end of July 2011.

James Menzies, Chief Executive Officer of Salamander Energy, said, "Dao Ruang is clearly a very large, gas-bearing structure, though we have not been able to find effective reservoir. We will now use this recent well data, together with the new 3D seismic data acquired over the Sinphuhorm field, to further develop our understanding of the play and review our wider position in the Khorat basin.

Focus of the drilling program now moves to offshore Vietnam with Cat Ba, a 100 MMbbl oil prospect, expected to spud later this month."

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

Lundin Spins Bit Offshore Malaysia

- Lundin Spins Bit Offshore Malaysia

Thursday, July 14, 2011
Lundin Petroleum AB

Lundin has commenced the drilling of the Cempulut prospect located in Block SB303, offshore Sabah in East Malaysia.

The main objective of the well is to test a large shallow late Miocene carbonate reef with a crestal seismic amplitude anomaly.

The planned total depth is 1,031 meters subsea and the well will be drilled using the jack-up drilling rig Offshore Courageous. The well is expected to take approximately 30 days.

Lundin Petroleum holds 75 percent interest in SB303 through its subsidiary Lundin Malaysia BV. Lundin Malaysia BV operates 6 Blocks in Malaysia, namely PM308A, PM308B, PM307, SB303, SB307 and SB308.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

Faroe Spins Bit at Fulla Well

- Faroe Spins Bit at Fulla Well

Thursday, July 07, 2011
Faroe Petroleum plc

Faroe announced that drilling operations have commenced on the Fulla exploration prospect (Faroe Petroleum 50%), located in the west of Shetland area of the Atlantic margin.

This west of Shetlands well, located to the north east of the producing Clair oil field, is targeting potentially oil-bearing Devonian Clair reservoir sands at a depth of 2,100 meters. Faroe is operator of the well which is being drilled by the WilPhoenix semisubmersible drilling rig under contract with Awilco Drilling in a water depth of 120 meters. Operations are expected to be completed well within the summer weather period.

UK License P.1161 contains both the Freya oil discovery and the nearby Fulla exploration prospect. The Freya discovery was drilled by Mobil in 1980 and encountered 140 meters of oil-bearing Devonian Clair reservoir sands. Similarly to a number of the Clair appraisal wells, a valid surface oil sample was not obtained in the Freya discovery well. Since Freya was drilled, horizontal well drilling on the Clair oil field has led to a very successful extended well test in 1997 which in turn led to development sanction. The BP operated Clair field is under phased development and has been on production since 2005, having to date produced in excess of 75 million barrels of oil with current rates at approximately 40,000 barrels per day.

The Fulla exploration prospect is located in the same Clair reservoir sands at a depth of approximately 2,100 meters and is situated along the same structural trend to the north east of both Clair and Freya, thereby de-risking the prospectivity of the target.

The objectives of the Fulla exploration well are to prove a significant column of oil-bearing Devonian Clair reservoir sands on the Fulla structure and, in that event, to obtain an oil sample using advanced wire-line technology. If these objectives are met, uncertainties related to a possible Freya and Fulla combined development project will be significantly reduced.

In December 2010 Faroe farmed out a 50% interest in License P.1161 to Canadian Overseas Petroleum Limited (COPL) on promoted terms, such that COPL will pay 60% of estimated well costs for the Fulla well.

Graham Stewart, Chief Executive of Faroe Petroleum plc, commented, "We are delighted to be drilling the Fulla prospect, as operator. Should the Fulla drilling operations be successful, this will present an excellent opportunity when combined with the already defined Freya discovery to prove up sufficient resources for a significant standalone field development.

"The next exploration wells scheduled after Fulla are all located on our Norwegian acreage and are the Butch well followed by the T-Rex and Kalvklumpen prospects, which are expected to spud in 3Q and 4Q. Faroe's ongoing multi-well exploration drilling program will carry on through 2011 and beyond as we push forward to test our substantial northern seas portfolio of over 40 significant licenses."

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

E. On Spins Bit at Breiflabb Prospect

- E. On Spins Bit at Breiflabb Prospect

Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Rocksource ASA

Rocksource announced that the drilling rig Borgland Dolphin has commenced drilling on the Breiflabb prospect in PL 416 in the Norwegian part of the North Sea.

The PL 416 partnership consists of E.ON Ruhrgas (Operator and 50 percent working interest), Det norske oljeselskap (15 percent) and Rocksource (35 percent).

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too

Lundin to Spin Bit in North Sea

- Lundin to Spin Bit in North Sea

Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Petroleum Safety Authority Norway

Lundin has received consent to carry out exploration drilling of well 16/2-7 in the North Sea with the Bredford Dolphin mobile facility.

The well will be drilled in production license 501, approx. 167 kilometers west of Stavanger.

The well has the coordinates N 58º 46' 47.79'', E 02º 39' 16.34''. The water depth at the site is approx. 113 meters.

The activity has an estimated duration of 53 to 67 days, depending on whether the well is dry or if a discovery is made.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too

Lundin Primes Bit for North Sea Drilling

- Lundin Primes Bit for North Sea Drilling

Friday, June 10, 2011
Norwegian Petroleum Directorate

he Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has granted Lundin Norway AS a drilling permit for well 16/2-7, cf. Section 8 of the Resource Management Regulations.

Well 16/2-7 will be drilled from the Bredford Dolphin drilling facility at position 58°46'48"N 02°39'16"E after completing drilling of wildcat well 16/3-4 for Lundin in production license 501.

The drilling program for well 16/2-7 relates to drilling of a wildcat well in production license 501. Lundin is the operator with an ownership interest of 40 percent. The other licensees are Statoil Petroleum AS with 40 percent and Maersk Oil Norway AS with 20 percent.

The area in this license consists of parts of blocks 16/2, 3, 5 and 6. The well was drilled approximately five kilometers south of the oil discovery well 16/2-6 (Avaldsnes) in the central North Sea.

Production license 501 was awarded on 23 January 2009 (APA 2008). This is the third well to be drilled in the area of the license.

The permit is contingent upon the operator having secured all other permits and consents required by other authorities before starting the drilling activity.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too

Chevron Spins Bit in GOM

- Chevron Spins Bit in GOM

Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Maersk Oil

Maersk Oil is participating in a new deepwater well in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico after operator Chevron received a drilling permit from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE).

The permit marks the restart of the drilling campaigns Maersk Oil has been a part of in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico after deepwater activities were suspended last year as a consequence of the Deepwater Horizon accident.

"We are very pleased that this permit has been issued as it will allow us to move forward with appraisal activities on the exciting Buckskin prospect," said Bruce Laws, President at Maersk Oil in the U.S.

"The U.S. Gulf of Mexico remains a world class region for exploration and production and we look forward to continuing our work there with our partners."

The Buckskin appraisal well is located in the Keathley Canyon in Block 785, offshore Louisiana, at water depth of 6,540 feet. It is being drilled 8 kilometers from the discovery well that encountered oil in 2008 with drillship Discoverer Deep Seas.

Drilling began on May 16, 2011 and the planned total depth is 29,400 feet. Drilling will last some 136 days.

Chevron is operator of Buckskin, holding a 55% interest with Maersk Oil (20%), Repsol (12.5%) and Samson (12.5%) as co-owners.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too

Lundin Spins Bit at Avaldsnes Appraisal

Lundin Spins Bit at Avaldsnes Appraisal

Monday, May 16, 2011
Lundin Petroleum AB

Lundin announced that drilling of the first appraisal well 16/3-4 on the Avaldsnes discovery located in PL501, in the North Sea sector of the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), has commenced.

The main objective of the well 16/3-4 is to delineate the Avaldsnes discovery made in 2010 with estimated recoverable resources between 100– 400 million barrels of oil in PL501. The target is to confirm the presence of late Jurassic sand approximately 5 km southeast of the Avaldsnes discovery well 16/2-6. The planned total depth is approximately 2,000 meters below mean sea level and the well will be drilled using the semi-submersible drilling rig Bredford Dolphin. Drilling is expected to take approximately 45 days. The second appraisal well, 16/2-7, will spud directly following the completion of well 16/3-4 using the same rig.

Lundin Petroleum is the operator of PL501 with 40 percent interest. Partners are Statoil Petroleum ASA with 40 percent and Mærsk Oil Norway AS with 20 percent.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too

Harvest Natural Spins Bit Offshore Gabon

Harvest Natural Spins Bit Offshore Gabon

Friday, April 29, 201
Harvest Natural Resources Inc.

Harvest Natural Resources announced the commencement of drilling operations on the Ruche Marin-A exploration well located in the offshore waters of Gabon, West Africa. This exploration well will be drilled utilizing the Transocean Sedneth 701 semi-submersible drilling unit.

The Ruche Marin-A well will be drilled in a water depth of 380 feet to test multiple stacked pre-salt targets to a planned total measured depth of approximately 10,100 feet. Drilling is anticipated to require approximately 28 days. In the event of success, additional time will be required to test and evaluate the well.