BHP GROUP'S NW SHELF WELL CUTS THICK PAY NEAR '89 FIND

Feb. 5, 1990
BHP Petroleum Pty. Ltd. and partners have drilled an apparent Northwest Shelf oil discovery near their 1989 Chinook strike, boosting prospects for another floating production system (FPS) off Australia. BHP 1 Griffin, in the WA-210-P permit, cut a 318 ft thick hydrocarbon column. Preliminary samples taken downhole indicate oil is present. BHP has high hopes for the well because most of the column is in Cretaceous Barrow group sands, the pay at nearby Saladin, South Pepper/North Herald, and

BHP Petroleum Pty. Ltd. and partners have drilled an apparent Northwest Shelf oil discovery near their 1989 Chinook strike, boosting prospects for another floating production system (FPS) off Australia.

BHP 1 Griffin, in the WA-210-P permit, cut a 318 ft thick hydrocarbon column.

Preliminary samples taken downhole indicate oil is present.

BHP has high hopes for the well because most of the column is in Cretaceous Barrow group sands, the pay at nearby Saladin, South Pepper/North Herald, and Harriet fields.

BHP owns a 45% interest in the offshore permit, with remaining interests held by Mobil Exploration Australia 35% and Japan's Inpex Alpha Ltd. 20%.

The three, companies also participated in the 1 Chinook discovery, which flowed 6,412 b/d of 52 gravity oil, less than 5 miles away on the same permit (OGJ, July 24,1989, p. 21).

BHP tested a 16 ft interval in the Chinook well, which is not considered commercial on its own.

DEVELOPMENT POSSIBLE

If the Griffin discovery tests at a substantial rate, it could be developed together with Chinook with an FPS similar to those in Jabiru and Challis fields in the Timor Sea off Northwest Australia.

Such a development also could take in the nearby Hilda structure, in which Western Australia Petroleum Pty. Ltd. (Wapet) cut a 98 ft hydrocarbon column in 1974 but never tested the well.

It is the latest in a string of finds in the region.

Woodside Petroleum Pty. Ltd. gauged 7,200 b/d of crude oil through a 1 in. choke in its 1 Cossack late last month.

Early in January, Woodside logged a 335 ft gross oil column in the Carnarvon basin well (OGJ, Jan. 22, p. 20).

In addition, Wapet's 1 Cowie flowed 8,390 b/d of oil and 1.95 MMcfd of gas near Saladin field (OGJ, Jan. 8, p. 30).

Copyright 1990 Oil & Gas Journal. All Rights Reserved.