Heritage Oil Starts Drilling KurdistanHeritage Oil Starts New Drilling Programme in Kurdistan
Heritage Oil Plc (LSE: HOIL)announced it has started drilling the Miran West-2 appraisal well inKurdistan. The well is the first to be drilled in amulti-well exploration and appraisal drilling programme on the MiranBlock.
The well targets threeprincipal Cretaceous reservoir formations encountered in the MiranWest-1 well, Heritage expect the drilling to take four months tocomplete. According to Heritage Oil, the Miran West structure is one ofthe larger structures in Kurdistan which could contain upto four billion barrels of oil within the 200km2 area.
The appraisal well is approximately four kilometres northwestfrom the Miran West-1 discovery, where a 700 metre oil column wasencountered. Testing of the Miran West-1 discovery well concludedin August, with the company stating that the testing indicatedproduction between 8,000 and 10,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd) atMiran West-1. In August Heritage said the testing confirmed the wellhad an extensive fracture network, helping the production potential.
Heritage Oil Chief Executive, Tony Buckingham commented on the scheduled work on the Miran block:
"The spudding of Miran West-2 launches an active twelve monthexploration and appraisal drilling programme in Kurdistan. We learned agreat deal from the Miran West-1 well and believe this well will bedrilled in an optimal way. There is also further upside potential withthe neighbouring Miran East structure, scheduled to be drilled in2010, which together with Miran West has an area of approximately330 square kilometres. Our previous discovery has highlighted theprospectivity of the Miran Block, which potentially contains billionsof barrels of oil and has the capability to deliver significant valuefor Heritage."