Austria’s OMV is planning to spud a deepwater well before the end of this year on a high-impact prospect in the Taranaki Basin offshore New Zealand, with another lined up for early next year.

The wildcat on the Matuku prospect in PEP 51906 will be drilled using the semisubmersible rig Kan Tan IV. A further well is planned to be drilled on the Whio-1 prospect in PEP 51513 using the same rig in the first quarter of 2014, with OMV again the operator. The Whio-1 location will be selected utilising 288 sq km of 3D seismic shot.

The operator has previously estimated mean recoverable resources for the Matuku prospect at around 65 MMbbl. Participants in PEP 51906 are: OMV New Zealand (operator, 65%), Octanex (22.5%), and New Zealand Oil & Gas (12.5%).

OMV is already busy in the area, where it is operating a well in shallower waters on the Manaia-2/2A field and currently conducting an open hole wireline logging operation. Elevated gas readings and oil fluorescence were observed in the Moki Formation. Fluid samples with indications of oil were recovered by the MDT logging program, and several oil-stained cores were recovered. Analysis of these samples is ongoing.

Elevated gas readings and oil fluorescence were also observed in the Mangahewa Formation as expected. These will be evaluated by the current logging program.

Manaia-2/2A is located in PMP 38160 in the offshore Taranaki Basin, and is being drilled by the Frigstad Offshore-owned Kan Tan IV rig 1 km north of the Manaia discovery well, and 6 km to the southwest of the producing Maari field.