Appraisal well extends Syrah field in Egypt

Apache Corp., Houston, said its Syrah 5X appraisal well in Egypt's Western Desert tested 47.6 MMcfd of gas from the Jurassic Lower Safa sand, extending Syrah field to the northwest.

Feb. 13, 2007

2 min read

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Feb. 13 -- Apache Corp., Houston, said its Syrah 5X appraisal well in Egypt's Western Desert tested 47.6 MMcfd of gas from the Jurassic Lower Safa sand, extending Syrah field to the northwest.

The Syrah 5X well targeted the lower 50 ft of Lower Safa pay. The well flowed from perforations at 14,210-60 ft through a 1-in. choke with 2,599 psi flowing wellhead pressure.

Syrah field, which lies on the Khalda Concession, is slated to begin production in third quarter 2008, following completion of continuing infrastructure expansion in the greater Khalda area.

The field lies 4 miles north of Qasr field, Apache's largest discovery, which is currently producing 340 MMcfd of gas and 15,800 b/d of condensate from the Lower Safa sand.

Qasr was discovered in 2003 and contains proved reserves of 2.1 tcf of gas and 64.5 million bbl of condensate in the Lower Safa. This field also is producing 11,800 b/d of oil from the Cretaceous Alem el Bueib (AEB), a shallower formation overlying the deeper Lower Safa.

In March 2005, the Syrah 1X discovery well tested 46.5 MMcfd from a correlative zone. The success of Syrah field, along with newly acquired 3D seismic data, create the potential for further exploration on Apache's acreage to the north in the Matruh Concession, where five Jurassic-AEB exploratory tests are planned this year.

Apache said it is evaluating the Jurassic-AEB potential in the 4 miles between Syrah and Qasr fields.

Apache operates Khalda with a 100% contractor interest.