Eni has encountered oil in Upper Miocene sequences on the Sayulita exploration prospect in Block 10 in the mid-deep water of Cuenca Salina Sureste basin, offshore Mexico. Preliminary estimates put the discovery at a possible 150,000-200,000 boe in place.
Sayulita-1 EXP is the seventh successful well drilled by Eni offshore Mexico in basin and the second commitment well of Block 10. The well was drilled by the Valaris 8505 semisubmersible rig in water depth of 325 m, reaching a total depth of 1758 m ssl. It lies about 70 km off the coast and 15 km away from the Saasken oil discovery that will be appraised toward yearend (OGJ Online, Feb. 17, 2020).
Sayulita-1 EXP found 55 m of net pay of good quality oil in the Upper Miocene sequences. The reservoirs show excellent petrophysical properties. Data collection has been carried out and the data acquired indicate a production capacity for the well of up to 3,000 b/d of oil.
The discovery, along with that of Saasken, confirm the value of the asset and open the potential commercial outcome of the block as other nearby prospects may be clustered for development, the operator said.
The Block 10 joint venture is operated by Eni with 65% interest. Partners are Lukoil (20%) and Capricorn, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cairn Energy PLC (15%).
Eni is currently producing more than 20,000 boe/d from Mexico’s Area 1 on an early production configuration and expects to ramp-up to 65,000 boe/d in 2022 and reach a plateau of 90,000 boe/d in 2025. Eni holds rights in eight exploration and production blocks (six as operator), all in the Gulf of Mexico’s Sureste basin, where it is carrying out an exploration and appraisal campaign.
