AFRICA

Total boosts production at Angola block

Total, operator of Block 17 in Angola, started up CLOV, a major deep offshore development located 140 km (87 miles) offshore Luanda, Angola, that will contribute to increasing Block 17 production to 700 Mbbl/d. With a production capacity of 160 Mbbl/d, CLOV will develop proven and probable reserves of more than 500 MMbbl, Total said in a press release. After Girassol, Dalia and Pazflor, CLOV is the fourth FPSO unit on Block 17. With the additional production from CLOV, Block 17 will become Total’s most prolific production site, the release said.

Statoil discovers gas offshore Tanzania

Statoil and coventurer ExxonMobil discovered an additional 57 Bcm to 85 Bcm (2 Tcf to 3 Tcf) of natural gas in place in the Piri-1 well in Block 2 offshore Tanzania. The discovery is the companies’ sixth discovery and the fifth high-impact discovery in Block 2, Statoil said in a news release. This discovery brings the total of in-place volumes in Block 2 up to about 566 Bcm (20 Tcf). The new gas discovery was made in the same Lower Cretaceous sandstones as the gas discovery in the Zafarani-1 well drilled in 2012.

ASIA-PACIFIC

Mubadala confirms Malaysia gas discoveries

Appraisal drilling and testing has confirmed the Pegaga discovery in Block SK320 offshore Malaysia as a substantial gas find with significant commercial potential, Mubadala Petroleum said in a news release. Another discovery, Sirih-1, also has been confirmed from the 2013-2014 exploration drilling program that has targeted a series of carbonate pinnacles within Block SK320. The Pegaga-2 appraisal well confirmed an 850-m (2,789-ft) gas column. The Sirih-1 well penetrated a 293-m (961-ft) gas column.

Woodside discovers gas at Toro well

Woodside reported that the Toro-1 exploration well in permit WA-430-P has intersected about 150 m (492 ft) of gross gas and 65 m (213 ft) of net gas within the Mungaroo Formation target, according to a press release. Following drilling, wireline logging has been conducted and confirmed the presence of a gas column through pressure measurements and gas sampling. The well will now be plugged and abandoned as planned, the company said. Toro is located in Western Australia’s Exmouth Sub-Basin and is within 22 km (14 miles) of Woodside’s existing Ragnar-1A discovery.

EUROPE

Faroe makes discovery on Bue prospect

Faroe's Bue sidetrack well (6406/12-3 A) in the Norwegian Sea encountered an 18-m (59-ft) hydrocarbon column in reservoir rocks of variable quality. The well was drilled to a depth of 3,656.5 m (11,996 ft) below sea level 2.1 km (1.3 miles) northeast of the Pil discovery well 6406/12-3 S. Pressure data indicate no communication between the Pil and Bue discoveries, and Bue has proven a separate accumulation of hydrocarbons. An extensive data acquisition program was carried out including a fluid sample, and the operator’s preliminary estimate of the gross size of the Bue discovery is between 6 MMboe and 25 MMboe.

CGG conducts southeast Barents Sea survey

CGG’s Robertson Geolab is performing a multiclient surface geochemistry (shallow core) survey to detect seafloor seepages of hydrocarbons in the southeast Barents Sea. The survey covers all the blocks in this region that have been recently proposed by the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate as well as sampling of outlying sub-areas where hydrocarbon seepages are suggested to be present by methods including satellite image analysis. The goal of the survey is to detect active petroleum systems in the area targeting both larger and smaller structures of interest.

GULF OF MEXICO

GulfSlope gains 21 GoM leases

GulfSlope Energy has received notice of award and has completed all requirements for 21 offshore lease blocks for which it was the high bidder at Offshore Lease Sale 231 in the central Gulf of Mexico (GoM) conducted by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. With the conclusion of the lease award process, GulfSlope controls 98,941 acres covering 17 prospects previously identified by the company. The blocks are located on the outer shelf and upper slope of the GoM in water depths of less than 305 m (1,000 ft).

MIDDLE EAST

MOL finds oil in Pakistan

MOL’s Ghauri joint venture (JV) has made a significant oil discovery in the Ghauri X-1 well located in the Punjab province of Pakistan, MOL said. The company said the potential for the Ghauri Block could be significant but that it was too early to give a forecast for the whole block. The JV is made up of Mari Petroleum Co. with 35% working interest as operator, Pakistan Petroleum Ltd. with 35% and MOL with 30%.

Qatar unveils $10.6 billion Bul Hanine plan

Qatar Petroleum (QP) has announced plans to invest about $10.6 billion to redevelop the Bul Hanine offshore oil field located about 120 km (75 miles) to the east of the Qatari coastline, according to a news release. The project is currently at the pre-FEED stage. It is designed to prolong the field’s life by countering its production decline and doubling its current oil production rate, the release said. Major reservoir and fieldwide studies have been undertaken to reassess the reserves and the long-term production prospects for each field, the release said.

RUSSIA CIS

Roxi makes discovery at Kazakhstan BNG asset

Roxi Petroleum Plc made a discovery at its flagship BNG asset in Kazakhstan. Well A5, the first deep well in the contract area, detected oil and gas shows at a depth of 4,332 m (14,213 ft). After the completion of cleanup work to deal with the oil and gas shows encountered, core samples will be taken to determine the oil-bearing horizon. The BNG contract area is located in the west of Kazakhstan 40 km (25 miles) southeast of Tengiz on the edge of Mangistau Oblast.

Lundin sells assets in Russia’s Komi region

Lundin Petroleum AB has entered into an agreement with Arawak Energy Russia BV to sell Lundin’s entire interests in the Sotchemyu-Talyu and the North Irael fields in the Komi Region of Russia. Lundin holds a 50% interest in each of the two fields; Arawak holds the remaining 50% interest and acts as operator. Lundin reported aggregate net reserves of 6.1 MMboe from the two fields as of Dec. 31, 2013. Net production for the first half of 2014 is estimated at 2,150 boe/d.

SOUTH AMERICA

GeoPark discovers new oil field in Chile

GeoPark Ltd. reported the discovery of a new oil field in Chile, according to a company press release. Primavera Sur 1 well marks the first discovery of an oil field on the newly acquired Campanario Block in Tierra del Fuego, Chile. GeoPark operates and has a 50% working interest in the Campanario Block in partnership with Empresa Nacional de Petroleo de Chile. GeoPark successfully drilled and completed the Primavera Sur 1 well to a total depth of 2,446 m (8,025 ft). A test conducted in the Tobifera Formation resulted in a production rate of about 215 gross bbl/d of oil of 39.9°API. Further production testing will be required to determine stabilized flow rates and the extent of the reservoir.