BP Amoco PLC has made a major deepwater gas find off Trinidad and Tobago that could yield 2 tcf of gas. The company said this is its third such large find off Trinidad in 3 years.
The Manakin-1 exploration well, in 730 ft water on Block 5b off the southeast coast of Trinidad, was drilled to 11,680 ft and found seven hydrocarbon-bearing zones with 300 ft of net pay. On drill stem test, one pay sand flowed 25 MMcfd of gas through a 40/64-in. choke. The well was temporarily plugged and abandoned Apr. 5.
The well was drilled into a large structure that straddles the Trinidad-Venezuela maritime border. BP Amoco said it found new gas reservoirs while confirming shallow gas found in Venezuelan waters in 1983.
"This new find reinforces the industry's assessment of significant gas potential in this basin, and it augurs well for future development from which Trinidad and Tobago will benefit enormously. Trinidad and Tobago is a world-class hydrocarbon province, and this well result adds another discovery to a long list of successes underpinning our strategy to focus significant resources in this region.
"We recently agreed a two-train LNG expansion in Trinidad which will treble production to 9 million tonnes/year by 2003, at $7 billion (Trin.)�the largest single investment in the Caribbean," said Larry Tiezzi, President of the BP Amoco Trinidad Exploration Business Unit (OGJ, Jan. 24, 2000, p. 30).
Manakin was the last of three wells BP Amoco was committed to drilling on the block and the second of a four-well 2000 drilling program. BP Amoco's wholly owned subsidiary Amoco Trinidad Gas BV operates Licence 5b with a 70% equity interest. Repsol-YPF SA unit Repsol Exploration Tobago SA holds the remaining 30%.