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    1. Drilling & Completion

    New Etame well shows strong for VAALCO offshore Gabon

    July 21, 2015
     VAALCO Energy Inc. has brought the Southeast Etame 2-H well online at a rate of approximately 3,400 b/d.
    Constellation II
    Constellation II

    Offshore staff

    HOUSTON –VAALCO Energy Inc. has brought the Southeast Etame 2-H well online at a rate of approximately 3,400 b/d (approximately 850 b/d net to VAALCO).

    Etame 2-H was the first development well drilled in the Southeast Etame field. It is also the first well drilled and brought into production at the company’s new Southeast Etame/North Tchibala (SEENT) platform, located in around 260 ft (79 m) of water offshore Gabon.

    The well was drilled to a measured depth of approximately 14,012 ft (4,270.9 m), targeting a new reservoir that was discovered by an exploration well drilled by VAALCO in 2010. It is producing from theGamba formation, which is the source of all the company’s other production in the Etame Marin permit area, but the first production from this new, previously unproduced field. 

    The Etame 2-H well is not producing any formation water orhydrogen sulfide; has a flowing tubing pressure of 1,080 psi (74.46 bar); and is producing at the lowest setting on the electrical submersible pump (ESP). The combination of reservoir pressure; productivity equivalent to or greater than other nearby Gamba development wells; and the low setting being used on the ESP confirm the strength of this well.  VAALCO says it plans to continue to produce the well at the current rate to monitor wellhead and downhole pressure and to optimize fluid throughput at the recently commissioned production facilities on the platform.

    TheTransocean Constellation II jackup has been moved to a second slot on the same platform to drill the North Tchibala 1-H well, which will target the Dentale formation in another previously unproduced field (North Tchibala). It was discovered and delineated by prior wells but has not been placed on production.

    Steve Guidry, VAALCO's chairman and CEO, said that the company expects to have results from that well by late September.

    VAALCO subsidiary VAALCO Gabon Etame, Inc. is the operator of theEtame Marin permit area and holds a 28.07% net interest in the Etame field.  Other participants in the permit are Addax Petroleum Etame Inc. (31.36%), Sasol Petroleum Etame Ltd. (27.75%), Sojitz Etame Ltd. (2.98%), PetroEnergy Resources Corp. (2.34%), and Tullow Oil Gabon SA (7.5%).