Offshore staff
MELBOURNE, Australia – The first exploratory well offshore The Gambia in 40 years will be P&A’d after encountering oil shows at various subsurface intervals.
Samo-1 well was drilled to a TD of 3,240 m (10,630 ft) and wireline logging is nearing completion.
According to Australian independent FAR, interpretation of the wireline logs so far indicates that the main target horizons are water-bearing, but the oil shows indicate the area has access to an active hydrocarbon charge system.
In addition, the well penetrated a good-quality reservoir and seal facies, suggesting that all main components for a successful trap are present.
The company and partner Petronas plan to use the data to review remaining hydrocarbon potential in the area. The government of The Gambia has extended the license by six months to end-June 2019 to allow for evaluation of the results.
Cath Norman, FAR’s managing director said: “The result in the Samo-1 well is not in line with our pre-drill expectations; however, it is providing an abundance of new subsurface information that will help us understand the geological play along the shelf edge – an area which remains grossly underexplored.
“The FAR team has identified a portfolio of prospects and leads in the A2 and A5 permits and the data from Samo-1will be used to further mature and de-risk these for future drilling.”
11/09/2018
