French Guiana oil find mirrors Ghana Jubilee play

Sept. 9, 2011
A group led by Tullow Oil PLC has made a deepwater oil discovery in the Atlantic 150 km off French Guiana in turbidite fans that extend to South America the Jubilee oil play off Ghana, West Africa.

A group led by Tullow Oil PLC has made a deepwater oil discovery in the Atlantic 150 km off French Guiana in turbidite fans that extend to South America the Jubilee oil play off Ghana, West Africa.

The Zaedyus GM-ES-1 exploratory well, drilled to 5,711 m in 2,048 m of water on the Guyane Maritime license, “opens a new hydrocarbon basin within which several neighboring prospects have been mapped,” Tullow said. It also reduces the exploratory risk associated with the company’s prospect inventory off French Guiana, Suriname, and Guyana, Tullow added.

The well encountered 72 m of net oil pay in two turbidite fans. Results of drilling, wireline logs, and samples of reservoir fluids show that the well has encountered good quality reservoir sands on prognosis, Tullow said.

Tullow said the ENSCO 8503 semisubmersible likely will deepen the well to more than 6,000 m to calibrate the deeper geology. It will then be sidetracked to obtain cores over the reservoir sections.

Partner Total SA said follows the acquisition in late 2009 and early 2010 of 3D seismic over a 2,500 sq km area in the eastern section of the license. The area included the prospect in which the well is being drilled and several other prospects in similar traps in an abrupt margin play.

Tullow is operator of the Guyane Maritime license with 27.5% interest. A Shell subsidiary has 45% and Total has 25%. Northpet, a company held 50-50 by Northern Petroleum PLC and Wessex Exploration PLC, has 2.5%.