Perth-based FAR Ltd.’s much-anticipated Samo-1 wildcat well drilled offshore Gambia has been plugged as a dry hole (OGJ Online, Oct. 23, 2018).
FAR said the well had reached a total depth of 3,240 m, but interpretation of wireline logs suggested the main target horizons were water-bearing.
Putting a positive face on it, FAR added that oil shows were encountered in some levels indicating that the area has access to an active hydrocarbon charge system. The well also drilled through excellent reservoir and seal facies.
Ongoing interpretation of all data will now be critical to unlocking hydrocarbon potential of the area, which lies directly south of the company’s major oil discovery in SNE field off Senegal.
The Gambian government has confirmed a 6-month extension of the current license to the end of June 2019 to allow for evaluation of Samo-1 results.
FAR’s Managing Director Cath Norman admitted that Samo-1 was not in line with predrill expectations. “It is, however, providing an abundance of new subsurface information that will help us understand the geological play along the shelf edge, an area that remains grossly underexplored,” Norman said.
“The FAR team has identified a portfolio of prospects and leads in permit A-2 (containing Samo-1) and adjacent block A-5 and the Samo-1 data will be used to further mature and derisk these for future drilling,” Norman said.
One of the prospects is called Soloo, which is north of Samo and abuts the offshore boundary between Gambia and Senegal. It has two targets, one of which is an SNE field extension of the S4300 sands. There is also a shallower target in the S4000 sands.
FAR has a 40% interest and operatorship, Petronas has 40% and Erin Energy 20%. Petronas earned its 40% in return for carrying FAR for 80% of the costs of Samo-1.
