Wintershall Holding GMBH aims to complete a 12-well drilling program this spring in northwest Germany at a cost of about €30 million.
The program started in September and six wells have been completed in Emlichheim field in Lower Saxony near the Dutch border.
The wells are connected to the Bentheimer sandstone at depths of 700-900 m.
Four of the 12 wells will be used to inject steam into the reservoir under high pressure at a temperature of 300° C.
Steam flooding and horizontal drilling have resulted in an above-average oil recovery rate of more than 40%, the company said.
Wintershall expects the field to continue producing for another 25 years (OGJ Online, Feb. 12, 2015).
