US

According to IHS Markit, Devon Energy Corp. completed two high-volume, Second Bone Spring producers in the Delaware Basin portion of New Mexico. The wells were drilled from a drill pad in Section 6-23s-32e of Lea County. The #212H Boundary Raider 6-7 Federal Com flowed 12.868 Mboe/d (82% oil). The extended-lateral horizontal well was drilled to 6,215 m (20,390 ft) and was expected to bottom 3.2 km (2 miles) to the south in Section 7 at a proposed true vertical depth of 3,090 m (10,138 ft). The #213H Boundary Raider 6-7 Federal Com flowed 11.149 Mboe/d (76% oil). Few additional details are available, although the parallel, stacked lateral had a planned depth of 6,068 m (19,907 ft), with a 3,175 m (10,418 ft) true vertical depth. Over the next 18 months, Devon announced that it expects to drill 25 wells in the same sweet spot.

Mexico

Talos Energy is preparing to drill exploration well #1-Asab in the block adjacent to the Zama Field discovery in Mexico’s Bay of Campeche. According to the company, the Salina Basin well is expected to produce additional information for the appraisal of the discovery at #1-Zama in Block 7 in the shallow-water region of Campeche Bay. The current resource estimate for Zama is 1.4 Bbbl to 2 Bbbl of oil in place.

Argentina

Echo Energy is ready to begin testing at an onshore Argentina gas discovery, #1 Fracción D in the Austral Basin. The prospective gas resources for the Eastern flank of the Cañadón Salto Field for the C1 and C3 horizons were estimated in a recent report at 756 MMcm (26.7 Bcf). According to the company, the deeper Tobífera gas target, also in Cañadón Salto, may be considered for a contingent exploration well later in 2018. The workovers to the west and center of the field produced a combination of oil and water and were suspended pending further development of the project. A number of other potential locations have been identified and will be incorporated into the project planning. A four-well exploration program is scheduled at the company’s Fracción C asset at the ELM 1004 well pad.

Morocco

SDX Energy reported a gas discovery at exploration well #1-LNB on the Lalla Mimouna Block in Morocco. The well was drilled to 1,861 m (6,106 ft) and was targeting the Lafkerena. The venture hit 300 m (984 ft) of gas-bearing horizons in an overpressured section. Mud logs from the section showed elevated gas readings of more than 20% with multiple sections above 50%. The company also noted that the gas shows in this section contained heavier hydrocarbon components throughout, which has not been found in other parts of the basin and indicate that a new petroleum system has been encountered. Based on mud logs, formation cuttings and mapping, a preliminary recoverable gas volume has been estimated at an unrisked mid-case volume of 288.8 MMcm (10.2 Bcf) of gas and 55,000 bbl of condensate. In a secondary target, Upper Dlalha, SDX found 2.6 m (8.5 ft) of net gas pay with average porosity of 33%. Additional drilling and testing is planned for deeper Lafkerena section.

Norway

Shell Oil Co. has received a drilling permit for well #34/5-2 S in production license 373 S in the North Sea. Shell is the operator with 45% interest along with Idemitsu Petroleum (25%), Wintershall (20%) and DEA Norge (10%). The area in this license consists of parts of blocks 34/2, 34/5, 34/6 and 34/3. The well will be drilled about 20 km (12.4 miles) south of Knarr Field.

Norway

Wintershall AG, operator of production license (PL) 894, completed well #6604/5-1 in the Aasta Hansteen Field in the Norwegian Sea. The wildcat encountered three gross gas columns of about 190 m (623 ft), of which the reservoir makes up 90 m (295 ft) distributed between three different sandstone zones in Springa. According to Wintershall, the reservoir quality was moderate-to-poor and no gas/water contact was encountered in the well. The well was to prove petroleum in Upper Cretaceous reservoir. Preliminary estimates place the size of the discovery between 7 Bcm and 19 Bcm (247.2 Bcf and 670.9 Bcf) of gas and 1 MMcm and 3 MMcm (35.3 Bcf and 105.9 Bcf) of recoverable condensate. The licensees will evaluate this and other area prospects and discoveries for potential further development. This is the first exploration well in PL 894. It was drilled to 3,819 m (12,529.5 ft). The well will be permanently plugged and abandoned.

Niger

A second Agadem Basin well has been spud by Savannah Petroleum in its three-well Niger drilling campaign. The #1-Amdigh well is in the R3 portion of the R3/R4 concession area. The new well also is designed to evaluate potential oil pay in Eocene Sokor Alternances as the primary target, with the secondary target of potential oil pay in the Eocene Upper Sokor. According to the company, the assessed total mean unrisked recoverable resources in the basin are 39 MMbbl. The planned depth of the venture is 2,576 m (8,451 ft). If there is production, the well will be suspended for later re-entry and evaluation.

Gabon

Panoro Energy ASA completed appraisal well #3-DTM in offshore Gabon’s Tortue Field in the Dussafu license. The well was designed to appraise the western fl ank of Tortue Field in an attempt to extend hydrocarbon resources within Gamba and Dentale. The venture hit approximately 30 m (98.4 ft) of hydrocarbon- bearing reservoir within Gamba and immediately underlying Dentale sandstones in the Dentale D2B and Dentale D6 reservoirs. Additional development work is planned on the western fl ank of the field. The appraisal well was plugged and abandoned, and a second horizontal production well, #3H-DTM-3H, will be drilled and is targeting Gamba Sandstone in the central part of the field.

Egypt

Eni reported a Faghur Basin oil discovery at exploration well #2X-SWM in South West Meleiha license in Egypt’s Western Desert. The well is the first one drilled by the company to explore the deep geological sequences of the basin. It was drilled to 5,090 m (16,699 ft) and encountered 18 m (59 ft) of light oil in the Paleozoic sandstones of Dessouky as well as other hydrocarbon levels in Alam El Bueib sandstones. Production from Dessouky was 2.3 Mbbl/d of 32-degree-gravity oil and 1,132.6 cu. m/d (40 Mcf/d) of gas. Additional exploratory drilling is planned.

Egypt

In Egypt’s South K-Field, Trans- Globe Energy completed drilling development well K-45, which was targeting the main Asl A sand. The well was drilled to 1,777 m (5,831 ft) and encountered main Asl A sand, approximately 20 m (66 ft) structurally higher than the previously drilled K-46 well and is structurally the highest well in South K-Field Asl A and B pools. The new discovery at K-45 encountered an estimated 59.4 m (195 ft) of net oil pay comprising 36.5 m (120 ft) of net oil pay in the Asl A pool (A1, A2 and A3) and 23 m (75 ft) of net oil pay in the Asl B pool.