Perth-based 88 Energy Ltd. received approval from Alaskan authorities to drill its Merlin-1 wildcat in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A) region of the North Slope of Alaska.
The well is scheduled to spud in late February or early March and is part of the company’s Project Peregrine.
In anticipation of approval, field operations recommenced in January with commissioning of Rig 111 now nearing completion. Rig mobilization is scheduled to begin the first week of February. A single lane snow road to the location should be complete by mid-February.
Merlin-1 is targeting a prospective resource of 645 million bbl. Flow testing is planned if wireline logging confirms a discovery.
88 Energy holds 100% working interest in the project that will reduce to 50% following completion of funding as part of a recent farm-in by a group of private US oil and gas professionals under umbrella company Alaska Peregrine Development Co. As part of the deal, 88 Energy is to be carried for the first $10 million of an estimated $12.6 million total cost for Merlin-1.
A second well, Harrier-1, with an expected cost of $7 million, is expected to immediately follow Merlin, subject to Merlin-1 results and permit approvals. The prospect has potential to hold 417 million bbl of prospective resource.
Both prospects target the region’s Nanushuk reservoir and lie between ConocoPhillips’ Willow oil discovery to the north and Umiat oil field to the south.