Italian oil company Eni announced yesterday the discovery of a new deepwater light oil well in Block 15/06, estimating its reserves at around 200 to 250 million barrels of oil at the site.
“The Cuica-1 NFW has been drilled as a deviated well by the Libongos drillship in a water depth of 500 meters, and reached a total vertical depth of 4100 meters, encountering an 80 meters total column of reservoir of light oil (38°API) in sandstones of Miocene age with good petrophysical properties. The discovery well is going to be sidetracked updip to be placed in an optimal position as a producer well. The result of the intensive data collection indicates an expected production capacity of around 10,000 barrels of oil per day”, read the press release.
ENI added that this is the second “significant discovery” of oil within the Development Area of the Cabaça field and “confirms the commitment of the contracting group of Block 15/06 to leverage a legal framework favorable to additional exploratory activities within existing Development Areas”.
ENI also said that the Cuica-1 NFW well was “the result of the ILX strategy [infrastructure-led exploration]”, adding that “the well-head location, intentionally placed close to East Hub’s subsea network, will allow a fast-track tie-in of the exploration well and relevant production, thus immediately creating value while extending the Armada Olombendo FPSO production plateau. It is expected that production will start within six months after discovery“.
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After the discoveries of the Kalimba, Afoxé, Ndungu, Agidigbo, Agogo wells, as well as the well tests carried out between 2018 and 2020, the Cuica well represents the first commercial discovery in Block 15/06 since the restart of the exploration campaign activities – interrupted due to the covid-19 pandemic.
Angola, Eni concludes, “plays a fundamental role in Eni’s organic growth strategy, present in the country since 1980”, with a current production quota of around 120,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
In addition to Block 15/06, Eni currently operates Block 1/14 (offshore in the Lower Congo Basin), and the Cabinda Norte and Cabinda Centro (onshore) blocks, with plans to expand its “operational areas with Block 28 offshore in the Namibe Basin ”.
ENI Angola operates Block 15/06 since 2006, with a 36.84% stake, in a joint venture with Sonangol, holding the same 36.84% stake, and SSI Fifteen, with 26.32%.
