Rialto submits development plan for Gazelle field off Ivory Coast

Nov. 29, 2011
Rialto Energy Ltd. submitted a field development plan on Nov. 4 to the Hydrocarbon Directorate in Abidjan for developing Gazelle field, in Block CI‐202, offshore Ivory Coast.

Rialto Energy Ltd. submitted a field development plan on Nov. 4 to the Hydrocarbon Directorate in Abidjan for developing Gazelle field, in Block CI‐202, offshore Ivory Coast.

The field contains mostly gas with some oil and is in less the 50 m of water.

The company expects approval by yearend of the plan, including a memorandum of understanding regarding gas sales.

Doris Engineering has worked on the front-end engineering of the project and Rialto expects the Transocean GSF Monitor drilling rig to become available for starting the drilling program in late first-quarter 2012.

The company has procured long lead items for the proposed three-well program.

A recent update from an outside consulting company estimated that Block CI-202 contained total mean contingent liquids and gas resource of 50 million bbl and 396 bcf, respectively and total mean prospective liquids and gas resource of 511 million bbl and 1,785 bcf.

The operator Rialto holds an 85% interest in Block CI-202, with the remaining 15% interest held by Societe Nationale d'Operations Petrolieres de la Cote d'Ivoire (Petroci), Ivory Coast’s national oil company.