BW Energy confirms liquid hydrocarbons in Kudu area offshore Namibia

BW Energy has confirmed the presence of liquid hydrocarbons in the Kudu license area in Orange basin offshore Namibia.

Results come following completed drilling operations on the Kharas-1 appraisal well in the Kudu license area, the company said in a release Nov. 19.

The Kharas prospect, on the northwest portion of the Kudu formation, was sanctioned as part of BW Energy’s broader plan to identify upside targets in the 4,567-sq license area (PPL003) following seismic acquisition in 2023.

Kharas-1 achieved its technical objective of testing multiple targets within a single penetration, said Carl Arnet, chief executive officer, and the results “confirm, for the first time, the presence of liquid hydrocarbons” within the block, contributing to the company’s understanding of the broader petroleum system.

Arnet said the reservoir complexity requires additional appraisal to assess its potential and that a forward program “will focus on further high value targets based on the presence of liquid hydrocarbons, as well as gas and the learnings from Kharas-1A.”

The well reached a total depth of 5,100 m and intersected multiple reservoir intervals. Several shallow turbidite reservoirs with dry-gas shows were encountered, and reservoir properties from these and the acquired whole core are now being evaluated, the company said.

In the deeper section of the well, hydrocarbons were encountered in a fractured volcaniclastic reservoir, which the company said confirms a working petroleum system with condensate and/or light oil.

Further analysis is ongoing to determine the extent of the system and to characterize reservoir properties and appraisal options. The well will now be plugged.

Kudu gas field was discovered in 1974 about 130 km off the southwest coast of Namibia in in water depth of 170 m. It is delineated by seven subsequent wells.