Lower Miocene sands that correlate to those onshore Louisiana and in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico have been logged in the Lafitte ultradeep exploratory well on Eugene Island Block 223, said McMoRan Exploration Co., New Orleans.
McMoRan is setting casing at 27,000 ft at the Lafitte well and plans to deepen it to 29,950 ft to evaluate deeper Miocene objectives and possibly the Oligocene section.
The company has drilled the well to 27,038 ft in 140 ft of water, and wireline logs indicate several Lower Miocene sands below 24,300 ft that appear to be hydrocarbon bearing, the company said.
The sands are of various thicknesses that aggregate 200 gross ft (95 ft net), some of which are contained within a thin-bedded, laminated sand-shale formation.
The company said the sands “provide additional confirmation of McMoRan’s ultradeep geologic model. Lafitte is McMoRan’s third ultra-deep prospect to encounter Miocene age sands below the salt weld on the shelf.”
McMoRan has 72% working interest in Lafitte. Energy XXI (Bermuda) Ltd. has 18%, and Moncrief Offshore LLC has 10%.
About the Author
Alan Petzet
Chief Editor Exploration
Alan Petzet is Chief Editor-Exploration of Oil & Gas Journal in Houston. He is editor of the Weekly E&D Newsletter, emailed to OGJ subscribers, and a regular contributor to the OGJ Online subscriber website.
Petzet joined OGJ in 1981 after 13 years in the Tulsa World business-oil department. He was named OGJ Exploration Editor in 1990. A native of Tulsa, he has a BA in journalism from the University of Tulsa.