Bolivia gets deeper-pool gas-condensate find

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Aug. 11 -- Repsol YPF-Bolivia has reported a deeper-pool gas-condensate discovery in Rio Grande field in southeastern Bolivia.

The RGD-22 well, in the Rio Grande contract area 34 miles southeast of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, located 1 tcf of gas in place in an undisclosed formation and can be placed on production quickly. It flowed 6 MMcfd of gas and 160 b/d of condensate on initial tests.

The well is part of a project to deepen existing wells to increase hydrocarbon production. Rio Grande field was discovered in 1962 and has been on production since 1968 from formations as deep as 8,200 ft.

The operator, YPFB Andina, is a public-private partnership held 50.408% by the Bolivian government and 48.922% by Repsol YPF-Bolivia. Andina supplies 39% of Bolivia’s natural gas and 37% of its condensate.

Repsol produced 1.9 million bbl of oil and condensate and 315 bcf of gas in Bolivia in 2009 and had reserves of 102 million bbl of oil equivalent. The company is developing Huacaya and Margarita fields, aiming to boost gas output to 567 MMcfd by 2013 from 81 MMcfd today.