88 Energy Ltd., Perth, reached total depth at the Merlin-2 appraisal well on the North Slope of Alaska after penetrating all three target reservoirs and finding oil shows in cuttings as well as elevated gas readings.
The well reached total depth of 7,334 ft on Mar. 22. All three Nanushuk reservoir targets (N20, N19, and N18 sands) were penetrated. Logging-while-drilling indicated the target intervals are thicker than those encountered in discovery well Merlin-1.
All reservoirs contained oil shows and mud gas peaks were detected across the target sequences.
Wireline logging is under way to confirm whether mobile hydrocarbons are present as well as to evaluate reservoir quality and flow potential of the target zones.
The logging program will consist of multiple runs to include MDT for fluid sampling and flow potential measurements, side wall cores, and image logs.
Merlin-2 is a step-out towards the shelf edge east of the Merlin-1 discovery made in 2021 (OGJ Online, Aug. 16, 2021).
The program is part of 88 Energy’s 100%-owned Project Peregrine on the North Slope.