Apache Egypt discovery has highest reservoir yields to date

Apache Corp., Houston, made a new discovery on its Ras El Hekma concession 18 miles northeast of the company's prolific Khalda concession.

Dec. 30, 2002

2 min read

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Dec. 30 -- Apache Corp., Houston, made a new discovery on its Ras El Hekma concession 18 miles northeast of the company's prolific Khalda concession. The Emerald-1X well flowed 16.9 MMcfd of natural gas and 4,285 b/d of condensate through a 1-in. choke with 1,311 psi of flowing wellhead pressure.

The discovery logged a total of 218 ft of net pay in multiple Alem El Bueib (AEB) reservoirs. There were 184 ft of net pay in the AEB 5A, 5B, and AEB 6 reservoirs with no observed water contact.

Emerald-1X tested a 1,200 acre structure and perforated 34 net ft of pay in the AEB 6 sand in two intervals at 11,848-11,892 ft.

"Our improved understanding of the Tarek-Ras El Hekma fault trend offers great potential," said Rodney J. Eichler, Apache's regional vice-president and general manager in Egypt. "We have just found AEB sands 180-200 ft updip of any previous penetrations, and we have flow rates from the AEB 6 that are the highest ever recorded from that Ras El Hekma reservoir," he said.

At shallower depths of 10,010-11,644 ft, Emerald-1X logged 88 ft of gas condensate pay in the AEB 5B sand and 19 ft of oil pay in the AEB 3E sand. The well was drilled to 12,440 ft TD. Apache is the operator with a 100% contractor interest.

A new 3-D seismic interpretation indicates that the discovery has significant development and delineation potential, which Apache plans to test with a second well, Emerald-2X.

The well is Apache's 11th discovery in Egypt and its 16th discovery worldwide this year. Apache said it expected the well to be on production by yearend 2002, with gas and condensate going to the gas plant in Tarek field about 8.5 km away.

Apache gradually has increased its 40% ownership interest in the Ras El Hekma concession over the past 2 years, securing the holdings of Repsol SA to 90% (OGJ Online, Jan. 23, 2001) and the final 10% interest from Sydney-based Novus Petroleum Ltd. last summer (OGJ Online, Aug. 9, 2001).