Sonangol has started prep work to begin drilling and appraisal on Block KON11 in the Kwanza onshore basin in Cabo Ledo Commune, Luanda, Angola’s National Agency for Petroleum, Gas, and Biofuels (ANPG) said in a late August release.
The initial workplan, subject to the results of the first well, is expected to include one or more new wells with the primary focus being on the consortium moving directly to early oil production should the drilling program be successful, Corcel PLC said in a separate release. Corcel acquired 90% interest in Atlas Petroleum Exploration Worldwide Ltd. (APEX), and with it, working interests in KON 11/12/16 blocks onshore Angola (OGJ Online, May 24, 2023).
ANPG said, depending on the drilling outcome, the consortium could proceed with geological and geophysical data surveys with the aim of improved mapping of the block's structures, without jeopardizing the preliminary development aimed at restarting production.
KON11 is considered a brownfield development and includes the historically producing Tobias field, drilled and developed by Petrofina in the 1960s and 1970s, and inactive since the late 1990s. Work on the field included 12 vertical wells. Revised interpretation of the existing structures along with the application of modern drilling and completion technology, possibly including horizontal drilling, could lead to a higher original oil in place in the reactivated field, according to the operator and Corcel.
The traditional Tobias field reservoir is in the Binga limestone, with 4-14% porosity at a depth of about 700 m. Historic peak production was 17,500 b/d with 29 million bbl produced over the life of the field, Corcel said. The company estimates unproduced contingent oil resources of 65 million bbl.
Operations on the block are led by a consortium of Sonangol Pesquisa e Produção (operator, 30%), Brite's Oil & Gas (25%), Grupo Simples Oil (20%), APEX (20%), and Omega Risk Solutions Angola (5%). The concession was awarded in 2020.