Editor's Note: This article has been updated.
Royal Dutch Shell Plc (NYSE: RDS.A) has made its sixth discovery—Dover—in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico’s (GoM) Norphlet play, hitting more than 244 m (800 ft) of net pay, the company said May 24.
Drilled in Mississippi Canyon Block 612 in a water depth of 2,280 m (7,500 ft), the well reached a total vertical drilling depth of 6,780 m (29,000 ft) measured depth. But it is too early for Shell to reveal the estimated size of the discovery as well results are still being evaluated.
“Early indications are that this is primarily an oil discovery,” Shell spokeswoman Kimberly Windon told Hart Energy in an emailed statement. “Additional evaluation of the well data must be completed before we can determine the total size and recoverable resource potential across the discovery, but we do anticipate that Dover will be a tieback.”
The deepwater Norphlet trend has given birth to several GoM discoveries in recent years, which helps to keep the offshore region on oil and gas companies’ exploration radar. Success in the trend continued in January when the Ballymore well hit 205 m (673 ft) of net oil pay, giving operator Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) access to the Norphlet play in the eastern GoM, and the latest by Shell.
Shell Offshore Inc. has made six discoveries, including Appomattox, Vicksburg, Rydberg, Dover and Fort Sumter, in the Norphlet trend. The play, known offshore for its HP/HT conditions, is also present onshore.
“Dover showcases our expertise in discovering new, commercial resources in a heartland helping deliver our deep water growth priority,” Andy Brown, upstream director for Royal Dutch Shell, said in a news release. “By focusing on near-field exploration opportunities in the Norphlet, we are adding to our resource base in a prolific basin that will be anchored by the Appomattox development.”
The company is calling the deepwater discovery an “attractive potential tieback.”
“Development planning will commence once we better understand the recoverable volumes, which will help determine next steps,” Windon said. “At this time, we do not anticipate that Dover is a hub-class discovery but has the potential to tie back to the Appomattox host.”
The find is located about 13 miles away from the Appomattox host, which arrived on location in the GoM and is expected to start production before year-end 2019.
Shell said its major, deepwater hubs are well positioned to grow production through near-field exploration and additional subsea tiebacks, another trend taking shape in the GoM. Maximizing use of existing infrastructure with use of subsea tiebacks has helped GoM producers cut expenses and operate more efficiently as they strive to generate value.
“The company expects its global, deepwater production to exceed 900,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day by 2020 from already discovered, established areas,” Shell said in the release.
Dover is 100% owned by Shell, while the company holds a 79% interest in Appomattox with Nexen Petroleum Offshore USA Inc. holding the rest.
Velda Addison can be reached at vaddison@hartenergy.com.
Recommended Reading
US Raises Crude Production Growth Forecast for 2024
2024-03-12 - U.S. crude oil production will rise by 260,000 bbl/d to 13.19 MMbbl/d this year, the EIA said in its Short-Term Energy Outlook.
Iraq to Seek Bids for Oil, Gas Contracts April 27
2024-04-18 - Iraq will auction 30 new oil and gas projects in two licensing rounds distributed across the country.
Tech Trends: Halliburton’s Carbon Capturing Cement Solution
2024-02-20 - Halliburton’s new CorrosaLock cement solution provides chemical resistance to CO2 and minimizes the impact of cyclic loading on the cement barrier.
To Dawson: EOG, SM Energy, More Aim to Push Midland Heat Map North
2024-02-22 - SM Energy joined Birch Operations, EOG Resources and Callon Petroleum in applying the newest D&C intel to areas north of Midland and Martin counties.
Range Resources Expecting Production Increase in 4Q Production Results
2024-02-08 - Range Resources reports settlement gains from 2020 North Louisiana asset sale.