Offshore staff
TOKYO– INPEX has discovered gas with an exploratory well offshore Japan’s Shimane and Yamaguchi prefectures.
Operations began on June 5, and concluded on Oct. 26.
The semisubmersibleM.G. Hulme Jr. drilled the well to a depth of 2,900 m (9,514 ft) below the seafloor, 130 km (81 mi) northwest of Shimane Prefecture and 140 km (87 mi) north of Yamaguchi Prefecture where the water depth is around 210 m (689 ft).
The well encountered a thin gas reservoir in a shallow zone, with further indications of gas indications in deeper zones. Analysis indicates the presence of a high-pressure gas column in the deepest zone.
Based on the findings of a gas reservoir in the shallow zone and gas indications in the deeper and deepest zones in this area, which had not been drilled since the 1980s, INPEX plans to evaluate the findings with a view to further exploration of prospects in this area.
Japan’s Agency of Natural Resources and Energy of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry commissioned the well as part of the “Heisei 26~28 Domestic Offshore Drilling Program in Japan.”
10/31/2016
