Exploration mounts off Western Australia

Natural gas reserves off Western Australia stand to increase with the awarding of another deepwater exploration license in the Gorgon field area. Following competitive bidding, Commonwealth-Western Australia Offshore Petroleum Joint Authority awarded exploration rights for Block W96-11 to units of Texaco Inc. and Mobil Corp., each with a 50% interest. The block covers about 3.52 million acres. The companies are members of West Australian Petroleum Pty. (Wapet).

June 30, 1997

2 min read

Natural gas reserves off Western Australia stand to increase with the awarding of another deepwater exploration license in the Gorgon field area.

Following competitive bidding, Commonwealth-Western Australia Offshore Petroleum Joint Authority awarded exploration rights for Block W96-11 to units of Texaco Inc. and Mobil Corp., each with a 50% interest. The block covers about 3.52 million acres.

The companies are members of West Australian Petroleum Pty. (Wapet).

Wapet-a venture consisting of Chevron Asiatic, Texaco Oil Development Co., Shell Development (Australia) Pty. Ltd., and Mobil Exploration & Producing Pty. Ltd.-is pressing exploration and development in the Gorgon/Chrysaor/Dionysus trend in the Carnarvon basin (OGJ, Mar. 10, 1997, Newsletter).

Earlier, a license was awarded to Chevron/Texaco/Mobil/Shell group covering the adjacent 1.35-million acre W96-14 permit area (OGJ, May 26, 1997, p. 28).

Plans

Seismic surveys on both permits will be carried out before yearend.

Water depths over the blocks are 900-1,600 m.

Mobil will operate Permit W96-11, and Wapet will operate Permit W96-14.

Texaco and Mobil have a one-well commitment during the first 3 years on W96-11. The commitment for W96-14 calls for drilling six wells during the first 3 years. The W96-11 and W96-14 permit awards add to the prospectivity of developing Gorgon area gas reserves for possible future liquefied natural gas projects.

They "provide further impetus for the rapid development of our assets to serve the growing Asian market for liquefied natural gas," said C. Robert Black, president of Texaco's worldwide exploration and production business unit.