Area Drilling

May 31, 1999
Harken Energy Corp., Houston, spudded Laurel 1, its third well on the 250,000 acre Bolivar Association Contract Area in the Middle Magdalena basin. It is to have a 4,000-6,500 ft lateral to evaluate Rosa Blanca at 8,800 ft TVD. The drill site is near Trigos 1, a vertical well that recovered 40° gravity sweet crude in 1954. Saba Shell Petroleum Co. Ltd. and Petronas Carigali Sdn. Bhd. are evaluating surrounding waters in Block G off Sabah for more deepwater opportunities after drilling a

Colombia

Harken Energy Corp., Houston, spudded Laurel 1, its third well on the 250,000 acre Bolivar Association Contract Area in the Middle Magdalena basin. It is to have a 4,000-6,500 ft lateral to evaluate Rosa Blanca at 8,800 ft TVD. The drill site is near Trigos 1, a vertical well that recovered 40° gravity sweet crude in 1954.

Malaysia

Saba Shell Petroleum Co. Ltd. and Petronas Carigali Sdn. Bhd. are evaluating surrounding waters in Block G off Sabah for more deepwater opportunities after drilling a substantial discovery earlier this year.

Kamunsu East-1, in 2,417 ft of water 16 km north of Kebabangan gas field, cut a thick section of gas pay with oil indications in stacked sandstones below 7,750 ft. The findings indicate that the "total in-place reserves are commercial," Shell said.

Atwood Falcon drilled the discovery to 8,588 ft in a record 34 days.

Pakistan

IPR Transoil Corp., Cairo, won the Guddu concession in Sindh Province.

The 2,093 sq km concession is near Mari, Sui, Kandhkot, and Qadirpur gas fields. Discovery of sweet gas in Cretaceous Pab in a deep well at Sui improves the prospect for gas exploration at similar depths on the Kashmore structure on the northwestern part of the concession, Transoil said.

Philippines

Murphy Oil Corp., El Dorado, Ark., told shareholders it is interpreting seismic data acquired over its Cuyo platform block in the northern Sulu Sea. The firm has an option to drill a wildcat on the 3.7 million acre geophysical survey and exploration contract.

Portugal

A group led by Mohave Oil & Gas Corp., Houston, plans to appraise an indicated discovery in the Lusitanian basin with drilling to start in fourth quarter 1999.

The indicated discovery well, Aljubarrota 2, encountered thick gas columns in Triassic Silves, the primary objective, as well as Jurassic Brenha and Coimbra fractured limestones, reports Doreal Energy Corp., Vancouver, B.C. TD is 3,615 m.

Logs indicated a 750 m gas column in Brenha, drilled with fresh water. Brenha flowed 350 Mcfd through casing from a 43 m perforated interval. Gas-water contact is at 2,450 m.

Sudan

A group led by the IPC Sudan Ltd. subsidiary of Lundin Oil AB, Stockholm, reported that its Thar Jath well is an apparent significant discovery.

The well was projected to 3,200 m to evaluate Cretaceous Bentiu and Darfur sandstones that have proved successful on the adjacent block being developed by Greater Nile Petroleum Operating Co. Thar Jath is on trend and about 75 km southeast of Unity oil field.

However, IPC Sudan drilled Thar Jath only to 1,820 m. Petrophysical analysis of the primary Bentiu and Aradieba sandstone reservoirs indicated "a substantial net pay interval that is further supported by excellent oil and gas shows and an oil gradient from repeat formation test pressure samples," Lundin said. Thar Jath is one of the largest structural features identified to date in the basin.

Venezuela

A Burlington Resources Inc. group was re-evaluating the 525,000 acre Delta Centro Block in eastern Venezuela after the first wildcat encountered hydrocarbons deemed noncommercial.

Jarina 1X, costing more than $20 million, was to have been drilled to 15,600 ft on a prospect on the northern part of a 220 sq mile 3D seismic survey (OGJ, Mar. 15, 1999, p. 31). No depths were reported. BR shared the block with Union Pacific Resources Corp. and Benton Oil & Gas Co.

New Mexico

Synergy Operating LLC, Aztec, N.M., staked three wildcats to Jurassic Entrada in McKinley County.

The Fajada Wash locations, in 2 and 7-20n-10w, are projected to 5,100-5,200 ft. They are 6-8 miles southwest of Leggs (Entrada oil) field and near a dry hole Santa Fe Energy Co. drilled in 7-20n-10w in 1981, IHS Energy Group reported.

Oregon

Enerfin Resources Northwest, Bakersfield, Calif., staked an exploratory test southeast of Mist gas field.

The 43-26-64 John Hancock Insurance, in 26-6n-4w, Columbia County, is projected to Eocene at 4,560 ft. The objective is Sunset Highway sand, a sub-Cowlitz horizon apparently separated from the field's Eocene Clark and Wilson reservoir by a layer of volcanics, IHS reported.

Pennsylvania

Somerset Oil & Gas Co., Indiana, Pa., acquired development and production rights to 141 gas wells that are part of a joint venture with Consolidated Natural Gas Co. The wells are in Indiana, Westmoreland, and Armstrong counties.

Texas

West Titan Exploration Inc., Midland, Texas, and Mobil Exploration & Producing U.S. Inc. committed to acquire a further 300 sq miles of 3D seismic surveys in the western Delaware basin based on preliminary processing results of the first 300 miles of data acquired. Completion of acquisition is set for mid-2000.

The companies, operating as Paragon joint venture, hold nearly 400,000 acres of leases in Culberson and Reeves counties. The venture is aimed mainly at gas exploration.

Meanwhile, Titan is testing four intervals in the Cherry Canyon member of the Permian Delaware Mountain Group in four wells drilled since early April in MiVida field, Reeves County.

Gulf Coast

Mustang Fuel Corp., Oklahoma City, and others completed an exploratory test in Jackson County.

The 1 Key went on line at 1.2 MMcfd of gas and 8 b/d of oil on a 9/64 in. choke from Eocene Yegua perforations at 5,372-80 ft. CAOF is 16.4 MMcfd and 198 b/d of oil, reports Parallel Petroleum Corp., Midland, Tex.

Wyoming

A group led by Redwood Energy Ltd., Denver, has an indicated discovery on the Overthrust Belt.

The 1-10P well, in 10-19n-120w, on the 7,029 acre Windy Point Federal Unit in Lincoln County, encountered more than 600 ft of highly fractured, structurally high dolomite in Mississippian Mission Canyon, reports Canadian 88 Energy Corp., Calgary. A completion attempt is planned.

The group re-entered a 16,520 ft dry hole Chevron drilled in 1982 and directionally drilled it to 14,483 ft from a surface site 4 miles northwest of giant Whitney Canyon/Carter Creek field.

Copyright 1999 Oil & Gas Journal. All Rights Reserved.