Rick Wilkinson
OGJ correspondent
MELBOURNE, May 17 -- Interest is rising in the Jacala-1 wildcat to be drilled later this year in the deepwater Exmouth Plateau region off Western Australia. BHP Billiton (North West Shelf) Pty. Ltd. is the operator, holding a 55% share after two companies farmed in to the project.
The most recent player, Roc Oil Ltd., Sydney, will earn a 20% interest in the WA-351-P permit by paying up to $4 million (Aus.) toward the cost of the well. Earlier this month, Tap Oil NL of Perth farmed in for a 25% interest.
The Jacala structure has been recognized since the early 1980s when a flurry of Exmouth Plateau exploration took place by a number of companies, including subsidiaries of what are now ExxonMobil Corp. and ConocoPhillips Co. The only significant find was Esso-BHP's Scarborough gas field, which currently is the subject of development debate between ExxonMobil and BHP.
Jacala was left on the shelf partly because of the overall lack of oil indications during the early Exmouth Plateau programs. BHP now believes it can trace an oil migration path to the structure, which lies on the west flank of the subbasin.
BHP expects to recover 500 million bbl of oil from Jacala. The feature has been mapped with an aerial extent of 300 sq km and 110 m of vertical closure.
BHP said Jacala is a simple but robust structure at the base of the Muderong shale, a well-known regional seal. The discoveries closest to it are Novara, Vincent, Pyrenees, and Macedon fields.
The Atwood Oceanics Atwood Eagle semisubmersible will drill Jacala-1 in September or October. Well costs are estimated at $8 million (US).
