Talos Energy expects to take delivery of Seadrill’s West Vela drillship shortly for a three-well exploration program in the US Gulf of Mexico.
Initially, the vessel will drill the Katmai West #2 well in late September to further appraise the field and potentially add to the resource.
Next up, probably in 1Q 2025, will be the potentially high-impact Daenerys subsalt exploration well in the Walker Ridge area, targeting 100-300 MMboe in the Mid-Lower Miocene.
On completion the West Vela will likely drill Helms Deep, an amplitude-supported, near-infrastructure subsalt Pliocene prospect (17-27 MMboe) with a planned depth of round 18,000 ft.
Next spring Talos hopes to achieve first production from the Katmai West #2 well. Associated modifications at the host Tarantula platform will increase the capacity from 27 MMboe/d to 35 MMboe/d.
The Katmai wells will be rate-constrained to allow for flat-to-low decline production from the facility. Ridgewood Energy is the other partner in the development.
Talos is close to securing a rig contract for completing its Sunspear discovery well, drilled in July 2023. The accumulation should start production in Q2, production through a tieback to the Prince platform.
A new downhole water injection well at the Lobster field began injecting water into the BUL-1 sand in May at a rate of 7,000 b/d. This should lift production of hydrocarbons by over 2 MMboe/d over the next 12-18 months.
The currently drilling Ewing Bank 953 exploratory well, operated by Walter Oil & Gas (Talos 33.35) is targeting a Pliocene reservoir at a depth of 19,000 ft with a potential resource of 15-25 MMboe. Results should follow shortly.
Talos recently acquired a 21.4% stake in the Monument discovery in the deepwater Wilcox play in the Walker Ridge area. Operator Beacon and its partners plan a subsea tieback to the Shenandoah production facility with an anticipated start-up of late 2026 (20-30 MMboe/d under restricted flow due to facility constraints).
