Hurricane Energy’s Halifax well has encountered a hydrocarbon column of at least 1,156 m (3,792 ft), supporting its view that the prospect is linked to the Lancaster Field to form a single large hydrocarbon accumulation, the company said in a news release March 27.

“We believe that the GLA [Greater Lancaster Area] is a single hydrocarbon accumulation, making it the largest undeveloped discovery on the U.K. Continental Shelf,” Hurricane CEO Robert Trice said in the release.

Hurricane said the reservoir interval hit is pervasively fractured and has porosities similar to those at Lancaster. The company believes the deeper oil down to (ODT) at 1,846 m (6,056 ft) true vertical depth subsea (TVDSS) identified in the Halifax well, compared with an oil water contact (OWC) at Lancaster at 1,678 m (5,505 ft) TVDSS, is likely caused by a tilted OWC.

The Halifax well, also known as 205/23-3A, was drilled by the Transocean Spitsbergen rig and cased at 1,179 m (3,868 ft) TVDSS, and further drilled to 1,801 m (5,909 ft) and a drillstem test was conducted. “However, constrained by budget, available time and the safety requirement of drilling overbalance, the well was unable to clean up and recovered only traces of formation oil to surface,” Hurricane said in the release.

The well was suspended. Hurricane plans to deepen the well, conduct additional test or pursue both.

A final investment decision for the Lancaster project is on track for the end of first-half 2017.

“We will process the data from the Lincoln and Halifax wells and expect to release updated CPRs toward the end of 2017,” Trice said.

Offshore