Panoro Energy has been encouraged by results from its latest development well on the Aje (SEN, 32/6) Field offshore Nigeria, which is to be tapped with a leased FPSO.

The Aje-5 production well on the OML 113 licence reached targeted depth of 3,255 m, having been drilled with the Saipem’s Scarabeo 3 semisubmersible in 300 m.

It is now being completed as a subsea oil production well.

Aje-5 intersected 72 m of gross hydrocarbon-bearing Turonian sandstone. Panoro said LWD data is consistent with data from the Aje-1, Aje-2 and Aje-4 wells, which all intersected a condensate-rich gas column with an underlying liquid oil rim of about 9 m.

“Preliminary indications are that the net reservoir over this interval in Aje-5 is slightly better than had been seen in these previous wells.”

The rig is now being moved to re-enter the existing Aje-4 well to complete it as a second Cenomanian production well.

The Aje Field is located in the western part of Nigeria in the Dahomey Basin close to the border with Benin. The field is situated in water depths ranging from 100 m to 1,000 m and first oil is targeted for 2016.

The aim for Stage 1 is to produce 10 Mbbl/d through the reentry of Aje-4 as the first producer and Aje-5 as the second.

The development plan includes the use of Rubicon’s Front Puffin FPSO vessel, which previously operated on the now defunct Puffin (SEN, 31/10) Field in the Timor Sea. The vessel is undergoing modifications in Singapore.

Offshore