Houston-based Vaalco Energy Inc. said it has signed a letter of intent to acquire Western Atlas Afrique Ltd.'s 65% interest in the Etame block off Gabon. Although the agreement is subject to governmental approval and to final agreement on terms, which were not disclosed, Vaalco expects the deal to close by the end of the year.
The Etame block holds a 3,700 b/d of oil discovery drilled by a Vaalco-led consortium in 1998 (OGJ, June 28, 2000, p. 40). Vaalco said it drilled a delineation well in 1999 to establish the oil-water contact in the field, and it has also been reprocessing 3D seismic data to better define the accumulation.
The company hopes to drill a second delineation well in early 2001. It has already signed a letter of intent with an unnamed drilling company to use a jack up rig to drill that well, Vaalco said.
The planned 8,000-ft well is designed to test an additional fault block updip to the existing discovery.
Vaalco currently holds 17.85% of the block. Other partners include Sasol, Petrofields Exploration & Development Co., and Alcorn Petroleum & Minerals Corp.
