China’s UNOCC has reported two primary oilfield discoveries, each of which would possibly involve more than 100 million tonnes of oil equivalent (or about 742 million barrels of oil equivalent) of the volume shown.
The state-owned company said the discovery was made in the Qinhuangdao 27-3 oil box located in the north-central waters of the Bohai QHD27-3-3 discovery well. The main source of oil production is the Neogene Minghuazhen Formation, and the oil assets are composed of medium-heavy crude.
News of the discovery comes just 10 days after CNOOC announced the discovery of South Kaiping in the South China Sea, another primary discovery that holds more than 100 million tonnes of oil equivalent.
Norwegian state-owned power company Equinor and its partner DNO have completed the drilling of an appraisal well and temporary direction that is intended to better define Heisenberg’s 2023 oil and gas discovery in the Norwegian North Sea. Wells 35/10-11 S and A in the North Sea also involves oil shown in the Hummer prospect. These are the first and second wells drilled under the 827 SB production license operated through Equinor. This is an additional acreage for production license 827 S, where the original discovery was made.
Odfjell Drilling’s Deepsea Stavanger semi-submersible well drilled the well, located about 140 km northwest of Bergen. The primary exploration objective of the 35/10-11 S hole to delineate the Heisenberg discovery made at 35/10-9 in the lower part of the Hordaland organization in the Eocene.
Well 35/10-11 S found the primary target in the water zone, well 35/10-11 A was drilled with the number one objective of assembling the Heisenberg rising flank in the oil zone. Hole 35/10-11 S encountered a sandstone reservoir totaling approximately 10 m of smart reservoir quality in the Hordaland Group. Equinor said the field is an aquifer with minimal amounts of hydrocarbons. Heisenberg is now estimated to contain recoverable volumes of between 24 and 56 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMboe).
In the secondary exploration target of the Balder Formation, a 3 m oil column was found in sandstone totaling 23 m with poor to moderate reservoir quality.
Hole 35/10-11 S drilled at an intensity of 1,853 m and terminated in the Rogaland Group in the Paleocene. Hole 35/10-11 A drilled at an intensity of 1,690 m and terminated in the Hordaland Group in the Eocene. The intensity at the site is 364 m. The well is permanently plugged and abandoned.
Heisenberg is close to several primary centers in the North Sea and studies are underway to accelerate the progression of the box thanks to a series of recent discoveries in this region, in addition to the discovery of Carmen last year.
Also in the North Sea, the Norwegian Ocean Industry Authority has granted Aker BP approval for exploratory drilling under production license PL102 F/G. Aker operates this license in partnership with Petoro and PGNiG Upstream Norway. The wells included in the consent are Trell Portiko 25/5-H-2 H and Trell Sirloin 25/5-H-2 AH, which will be drilled with Odfjell’s Deepsea Nordkapp.
Wintershall Dea Norge and his partners Petoro, Aker BP and PGNIG are comparing the progression characteristics of an appraisal well in the discovery of Adriana fuel condensate in the Norwegian Sea. The semi-submersible Transocean Norge drilled the appraisal well and found quality deposits in the Cretaceous Lysing Formation. , which led the partners to revise the estimated recoverable volumes upwards from 19 to 31 MMboe to a new estimate of 28 to 43 MMboe.
Adriana’s discovery was made in 2021, as a component of a multi-level discovery adding the North Dvalin fuel box, which is already being developed as a subsea connection to the Heidrun platform via the Dvalin box operated through Wintershall Dea. The discovery is located 270 km norte. de Kristiansund on the west coast of Norway.
A planned detour to assess Sabina’s deeper discovery, but had to be postponed for technical reasons. A re-entry is possible later this year or in 2025.
Transocean Norge has since been transferred to the Maria box operated through Wintershall to drill for the Maria Phase 2 project.
Contracts & Platform Movements
Malaysian offshore drilling company Velesto has secured long-term contract extensions worth $265 million for three of its jack-up rigs with Petronas. Contracts for Naga 2, Naga 4, and Naga 6 begin on February 7, 2024, and end on February 6. 2026.
Transocean Equinox has arrived in Australian waters to start a one-year contract for Shell primary oil in the Crux box that will keep the rig in use until March or mid-April 2025. The Crux fuel box is known as a filler fuel source. for the existing Prelude floating liquefied herbal fuel unit.
The Crux development, operated through Shell, is located in the North Browse Basin, 190 km off the coast of northwestern Australia and 620 km northeast of Broome. Following the contract with Shell, Transocean Equinox will begin work for a consortium that will include Woodside. Energy and ConocoPhillips are partners who will share the unit for their respective drilling systems and, if the consortium defines the features involved, the rig could remain in Australia until September 2028.
The Valaris 107 jack-up will also travel to its paint site in Australia to start a short connection contract for Santos, off the coast of Western Australia.
In October, Valaris 107 is expected to start a one-year contract with U. S. oil giant ExxonMobil off the coast of Australia, which includes two 180-day pricing options.
ExxonMobil will use the rig to plug and abandon 26s in the Gippsland Basin and plans to drill in the Kipper box with the same rig next year.
The drilling contractor’s 366m Valaris DS-14 drillship has arrived in the Canary Islands, where it will remain aground until it is awarded a contract. The Hanwha Ocean-built platform was not delivered until December 2023 with its sister DS-13 unit.
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