Guyane Maritime sustained French E&P investment in 2009

June 14, 2010
Exploration investment in France and its possessions fell only slightly in 2009 compared with 2008 due to heavy investment in blocks off French Guiana, South America.

Exploration investment in France and its possessions fell only slightly in 2009 compared with 2008 due to heavy investment in blocks off French Guiana, South America. With a slump in outlays in the Paris basin, overall investment in the French realm fell to €34.8 million from €42 million in 2008. Officials had feared a decline of 30%. Investment in 2010 is scheduled to total a promising €77 million.

Operators plan to spend €39 million in the Paris basin compared with €9.1 million in 2009, €15 million in the Aquitaine basin vs. €5 million, and €23 million in other areas, up from €20.7 million. As many as 10-15 well are on tap pending rig availability.

Overall production investment is also expected to rise in 2010 to €85 million from €76 million. The figures are €33 million in the Paris basin compared with €31 million in 2009, €51 million in Aquitaine vs. €44 million, and €500,000 in other areas compared with €770,000.

Exploration highlights

Overseas acreage in force will increase in 2010 as GTO, London, at the end of 2009 requested the 5-year, 21,000-sq km Marges du Finistere permit 50 km off Britanny in the Western Approaches, where no hydrocarbons have been found.

Exploration acreage increased to 42,666 sq km in 2009, up from 28,882 sq km in 2008, as 12 research permits were granted and 821 sq km were relinquished. France granted six permits in the Paris basin, four in Aquitaine, and two in Savoie in southeastern France. Operators requested 24 permits, up from 18 in 2008. Of the 24, 13 are in the Paris basin, 1 is in Aquitaine, and the others in the southeast, Jura, and Alsace.

Land exploratory drilling fell to four wells in the Paris basin. Three showed oil: Villeseneux-1 in the Upper Triassic, Saint Martin de Bossenay-701 in the Oxfordian—both new plays—and Saint Lupien-1H in Middle Jurassic.

Two Vibroseis surveys and a gravity survey were carried out.

Overseas offshore acreage in force fell slightly to 122,385 sq km from 136,959 sq km because of returned acreage linked to renewal of the Caravelle permit in Martinique held by Grynberg's RSM Production Co. and the Saint-Pierre & Miquelon permit south of Newfoundland held by ConocoPhillips and Murphy. Each renewed permit is about 11% smaller.

Development activity

Eight development-extension wells were drilled in the Paris basin in 2009, of which two were sidetracks-workovers.

Five of the wells showed promise: three at Saint-Martin-de-Bossenay and two at Saint Lupien nearby. Two other wells were being tested.

Hole drilled totaled 16,359 m compared with 7,008 m in 2008.

Oil production was 0.9 million tons in 2009 vs. 0.98 million tons in 2008. The Paris basin produced 57% of the oil and Aquitaine 42%.

The three main operators are Vermilion Rep with 46% of output, Total E&P France 25%, and Lundin 16%. The rest comes from Toreador 5.1%, Geopetrol 4.3%, SMP 2.3%, Petrorep 1.2%, and Oelweg 0.1%.

Operators produced 1.54 bcm of gas in 2009, down from 1.60 bcm in 2008 on a 4.5% drop at Lacq field. Marketed gas production was 0.88 bcm. Total E&P France operates 95% of the gas production, almost all of which comes from the Aquitaine basin.

Twelve companies produce gas, and the output comes mainly from Lacq Profond field 70%, Meillon 12.8%, Poissoniere 4%, le Lanot 4%, and Pecorade 4%. Coal mine methane output in northern France rose 21% from 2008 to 68 million cu m in 2009. The gas came from European Gas Ltd.'s Divion, Methamine, and Desiree-la-Naville mines.

Colorado

Rex Energy Corp., State College, Pa., said it has leased or taken farmouts on 20,000 net acres to explore for oil in Cretaceous Niobrara shale in the Denver-Julesburg basin.

The company expects to spud the first of two horizontal wells in the third quarter of 2010. The leases, which averaged $215/net acre, are in Weld County, Colo., and Laramie County, Wyo. The company continues to lease.

Utah

Consulting engineers estimated gas in place in coal seams at Clear Creek field, Carbon and Emery counties, Utah, at 814 bcf, said Marion Energy Ltd., Melbourne. Marion believes 70% of gas in place may be recoverable with extensive additional work

Meanwhile, the Oman 2-20 well workover at Clear Creek has begun to yield gas at unstable rates from Cretaceous Ferron coals. The well also produces gas from conventional Ferron sandstones.

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