New Zealand

TAG Oil Ltd., Vancouver, BC, plans to test an indicated light oil discovery north of its Cheal oil field in New Zealand’s Taranaki basin.

Sept. 29, 2010

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Sept. 29 – TAG Oil Ltd., Vancouver, BC, plans to test an indicated light oil discovery north of its Cheal oil field in New Zealand’s Taranaki basin.

The Sidewinder-1 exploratory well on the Broadside exploration permit PEP 38748 went to a TD of 1,601 m and cut 14 m of net oil-bearing sandstones in the Miocene Mount Messenger formation. Electric logs indicate 22% average porosity and 60% oil saturation.

TAG Oil, which controls 100% of the 7,910-acre block, will flow-test the well after finishing a frac job on the Cheal B-3 well in the Cheal mining permit. The rig will move to Cheal to drill the Cheal BH-1 horizontal well, which is to have a multistage frac treatment in a 600-m horizontal section in Mount Messenger and bottom at 2,325 m measured total depth.