InterOil Corp., Houston, said its Antelope-3 appraisal well in Papua New Guinea penetrated the top of the reservoir 217 ft high to prognosis, began flowing gas, and was shut-in.
The well on PRL 15 topped the reservoir at 5,328 ft, 92 ft higher than the Antelope-1 well. Drillers circulated out the gas kick, flared the gas, cemented 9-5/8-in. liner, and ran a vertical seismic profile.
Once a blowout preventer is installed and tested, the company will begin drilling the reservoir section in 6-1/4-in. hole.
The plan is to drill 300 ft into the reservoir, drillstem test the open hole section, then drill the entire reservoir interval to an anticipated total depth of 8,366 ft before running wireline logs, taking rotary sidewall cores, and drillstem testing.
Antelope-3 primary objectives are to confirm reservoir depth, composition, character, and continuity, provide samples for analysis to further assist in development well planning, assist in the gas resource evaluation, satisfy work program obligations for PRL 15, and complete the well as a future production well.
Meanwhile, Papua New Guinea’s Department of Petroleum and Energy granted a license variation that allows the company to defer drilling a second commitment well from the first 2-year work program into the second 2-year work program. This should allow InterOil to manage service industry cost as we ramp up to a two-well drilling program without straining the available resources in PNG.