Peru plans to relaunch exploration in Candamo to increase gas reserves

Peru's Ministry of Energy and Mines (Minem) plans to relaunch hydrocarbon exploration in the Candamo Valley (Madre de Dios). The plan was announced by Deputy Minister of Hydrocarbons, Iris Cárdenas, at the launch of the first congress of the Peruvian Institute of Gas, Petroleum, and Energy Engineers (IPIGPE).

Cárdenas said the initiative is driven by the need to increase natural gas reserves, local media reported. In the 1990s, Mobil (Exxon) discovered significant volumes of natural gas in Candamo (OGJ Online, Apr. 5, 1999). According to Minem estimates, Candamo holds around 14 tcf of natural gas.

Cárdenas said there will be joint effort with the Peruvian government’s environmental sector to minimize the impact on protected areas, as the gas discovered in Candamo overlaps with the Bahuaja Sonene National Park, which was established after Mobil's discoveries.

“New techniques and technologies for directed or horizontal wells would allow development in areas with restrictions,” she explained, citing work done in Camisea as an example. Camisea is operated by a consortium including Pluspetrol (27%), Hunt Oil (25.1%), SK Innovation (17.6%), Repsol (10%), Tecpetrol (10%), and Sonatrach (10%). Natural gas from the field, which lies among protected natural areas, is extracted with directed wells.

The Madre de Dios region holds prospective resources of 22.46 tcf of natural gas, according to an evaluation by Perú-Petro, more than half of which is linked to Candamo.