Statoil ASA has completed drilling wildcat well 7324/2-1 about 45 km north of the 7324/8-1 Wisting Central discovery and 350 km north of Hammerfest in the Barents Sea (OGJ Online, Oct. 8, 2013).
The primary exploration target for the well was to prove petroleum in reservoir rocks from the Middle Jurassic to Late Triassic Age (Realgrunnen subgroup), while the secondary exploration target was to prove petroleum in reservoir rocks from the Late Triassic Age (Snadd formation).
Well 7324/2-1 encountered reservoir rocks about 15-m thick with good reservoir quality in the Sto formation in the Realgrunnen subgroup. In the Snadd formation, about 170 m of reservoir rocks were encountered, with mostly poor reservoir quality and just a few meters with good reservoir quality, the company said. The well is dry.
The well was drilled to a vertical depth of 1050 m below the sea surface by the Transocean Spitsbergendrilling facility, and was terminated in the Snadd formation from the Late Triassic. The site lies in 443 m of water. Statoil has permanently plugged and abandoned the well.
Transocean Spitsbergenwill move on to drill wildcat well 7325/1-1 in the same production license.
Well 7324/2-1 is the first exploration well in Statoil-operated production license 615, which was awarded in the 21st licensing round in 2011.
