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The discovery of Brulpadda opens the "new" province off South Africa
Well met 57 meters net pay of gas condensate
Drill up to four other exploration wells at a block level
London –
Total has made a "significant" discovery of condensate off the coast of South Africa, opening a new natural gas and oil field off the southern tip of Africa, the French group said Thursday.
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The well-monitored Brulpadda-1 well, located in the Outeniqua Basin on the South African border, encountered 57 meters of net charge of gas condensate after drilling at a target depth of 3,633 meters, Total said in a statement. Total has not provided any official estimate of potential discovery resources, but is targeting about one billion boe resources with the well.
"With this discovery, Total has opened a new world-clbad oil and gas market and is well positioned to test multiple prospects on the same block," said Kevin McLachlan, senior vice president of exploration, in a statement. .
Brulpadda, or Bullfrog in Afrikaans, one of Total's major exploration targets this year, has for many years been on the list of upstream global observers as wildcat with potential for open borders. Although not a crude discovery, its gas resources could be used to power South Africa's flagship gas to liquids conversion facility at Mossel Bay, about 180 km northwest of the discovery. .
"Although the well is not an oil discovery, if Brulpadda would turn out to be about as big as estimates of a billion barrels of oil equivalent, it would still be a game. for South Africa, "said energy consultant Wood Mackenzie said in the note.
BORDER OPENING
Drilled in 1,432 meters of water in Block 11B / 12B, approximately 175 km from the south coast of South Africa, the exploration well planned for this purpose was long.
Total began drilling the wild cat Brulpadda at the end of 2014, but was forced to abandon the well before reaching the target depth due to the constraints imposed by the platform and bad weather.
The subsequent attempt to test the game with new support adapted to harsh deepwater environments began in December. The owner of the drilling rig, Odfjell Drilling, describes the Deepsea Stavanger, a semi-submersible, as a state-of-the-art unit capable of drilling depths of up to 3,000 meters.
Total indicated that it planned to continue drilling exploration to determine the extent of the discovery and determine if there are oil deposits next to the gas.
Following the confirmation of the gaming potential, Total and its partners plan to acquire a 3D seismic activity this year, followed by the creation of four exploration wells on the license to test four different prospects of a similar size.
Total operates block 11B / 12B with a 45% direct stake alongside Qatar Petroleum (25%), CNR International (20%) and Main Street, a South African consortium (10%). Canadian Minnow Africa Energy holds an effective 4.9% stake in the block through its 49% stake in Main Street. The French major also operates the adjacent larger block, Outeniqua South, which has not yet been drilled and extends to water depths greater than 4,000 meters.
GAS OR LIQUIDS?
Consumed energy, South Africa has long hoped for larger offshore developments, but relatively little exploration has been carried out so far. The potential of a new source of oil and gas in the country would be a major badet for the country.
South Africa imports about 70% of its oil needs from the Middle East and Africa. If commercial development succeeds, it could have a seismic impact on the economy. Electricity production would be stabilized and the outflow of the balance of payments account to pay for imported oil would cease.
"This discovery will surely spark a new wave of interest in acquiring land in the deep waters of the country and should bring major benefits to the troubled economy of South Africa." said Ben Payton, African head of Verisk Maplecroft, in a note. "… the process of revising the country's hydrocarbons legislation will now be catapulted onto the political front."
If the gas portion of the discovery is significant, Brulpadda could also serve as a catalyst to revive South Africa's gas-to-electricity conversion program and help replenish the gas supply in the country. Mossel Bay's liquids-to-liquids processing plant, noted Wood Mac. The South African government has expressed concern that the PetroSA GTL plant in Mossel Bay could run out of natural gas within two years when existing offshore reserves are exhausted.
But if the production of Brulpadda is used as a raw material for electricity gas plants, this reduces or eliminates the need for South Africa to import LNG or build additional pipelines in Mozambique. said Payton.
– Robert Perkins, [email protected]
– Stuart Elliot, [email protected]
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