Repsol group finds more natural gas in Egypt

Egyptian Western Desert Discoveries [89,181 bytes]

A unit of Spanish state firm Repsol SA, and partners Apache Corp., Houston, and Samsung Corp., Seoul, have announced the results from three successful wells on their Khalda concession in Egypt's western desert.

On test, two discovery wells and one appraisal well flowed a combined 90 MMcfd of gas and 6,800 b/d of condensate.

Operator Repsol Exploracion Egipto SA holds a 50% interest in the concession. Apache holds a 40% contractor interest, and Samsung holds 10%.

Apache said the Shams South-1X exploratory well flowed 29.5 MMcfd of gas and 109 b/d of condensate through a 1-in. choke with wellhead pressure of 1,505 psi from a single zone in Jurassic Ras Qattara sandstone at 12,952-13,000 ft. The well cut 186 ft of net pay and was drilled to 13,550 ft TD.

Shams South-1X extended the Shams field more than a mile to the south (OGJ, Jan. 2, 1995, p. 30).

The Qamar-2X new-fault-block discovery extended Shams field farther southwest and encountered 114 ft of net pay in Khatatba sandstones. The well flowed at a combined rate of 26.8 MMcfd of gas and 3,891 b/d of 47° gravity condensate from two zones.

The upper zone flowed 15.6 MMcfd of gas and 2,426 b/d of condensate through a 1-in. choke with flowing tubing pressure of 1,130 psi. It was perforated at 12,438-68 ft in the K2B formation.

The lower zone flowed 11.2 MMcfd of gas and 1,465 b/d of condensate through a 1-in. choke with wellhead pressure of 792 psi. Perforations were at 12,688-12,739 ft in K2D. The well was drilled to 13,800 ft TD in Ras Qattara.

The Shams 6X appraisal well flowed a combined 33.9 MMcfd and 2,800 b/d of condensate through a 1-in. choke. The well cut 153 ft of net pay in Jurassic Khatatba sandstone.

Three zones were tested:

K2A flowed 25.3 MMcfd of gas and 2,683 b/d of condensate with wellhead pressure of 1,639 psi from 12,108-148 ft.
K2FU flowed 4.8 MMcfd of gas and 117 b/d of condensate with wellhead pressure of 299 psi from 12,588-12,618 ft.
K2FL flowed 3.72 MMcfd of gas with wellhead pressure of 204 psi from 12,768-12,810 ft. It was drilled to 13,570 ft TD in Ras Qattara, according to Apache.

Production from the concession is committed under a 25-year take-or-pay contract covering a total 2 tcf of gas.

Apache said initial gross sales volumes of about 250 MMcfd are expected to begin flowing next year, upon completion of two pipelines (OGJ, Jan. 13, 1997, p. 27).

The gas will be used to fuel Egypt's national energy grid.