Energean Oil & Gas has spudded the WKO-1X well in the West Kom Ombo field concession located in Upper Egypt covering a total area of 31,521 km2. Energean Oil & Gas holds a 80% working interest and is the operator of the block, Groundstar Resources holds a 10% carried interest through the exploration drilling stage.
The WKO-1X is the first of two committed exploration wells for the Second Exploration Period in the West Kom Ombo concession. The well will explore the interpreted Prospect-A1 with the primary objective being the Lower Cretaceous Six Hills F & E sandstones. The well is expected to reach a total depth of approx. 2,370 meters in about 30 days, with the land rig 'ST-2' from Sino Tharwa Drilling Company. The second well is planned to be drilled in Prospect-B1 to evaluate the exploration potential of the SW side of the block and to determine the thickness of the sedimentary section. The strategic objective of these two exploratory wells is to fulfill the work commitments of the second exploration phase by September 16th of 2011.
After seven months of the acquisition of the West Kom Ombo Concession the Company has accomplished the completion of 25 km of access road from the Luxor-Kharga highway to the Prospect-A1 drilling location, furthermore 95 Km of road completed from Prospect-A1 to Prospect-B1, additionally the setting of all infrastructure and equipment and the rig mobilization to spud the first well on schedule.
Mathios Rigas, Chief Executive Officer of Energean Oil & Gas stated: 'We are very excited for the beginning of our first drilling operations internationally specially in the promising WKO Block. The drilling program commenced on time and we look forward with anticipation to the results, as we seek to advance exploring the area and enrich our portfolio of assets in Egypt.'
West Kom Ombo
The West Kom Ombo block is in South Central Dessert of Upper Egypt and has been the site of renewed exploration interest since Centurion Energy/Danagas discovered the Al Baraka Oil Field in the neighbouring Kom Ombo Block in 2007. The initial Exploration Period included the acquisition of 699Km of 2D seismic in addition to the 850Km previously acquired by Repsol in 1997. On the 17th Sept. 2008 GANOPE approved the 2nd exploration phase that has a duration of three years. After a relinquishment of 25% of the block the remaining area amounts to 31,520 sq Km. The work program for the second phase includes two exploration wells.
Interpretation of the newly acquired 2D seismic has shown that a Miocene rift basin analogous to that in the Kom Ombo area exists beneath the Sinn El Kaddab Plateau within the West Kom Ombo block. The Jurassic and Cretaceous stratigraphy and the fault block structures are considered to be comparable as well as the source rocks and reservoirs. The Al Baraka #4 well (2009) produced from 16 meters of pay in the Abu Ballas and Upper Six Hills formations, flowed oil to surface at a rate 220 BOPD and an artificial lift rate of 1300 BOPD.
5 potential structures (160 to 900 sq km) mapped at Lower Cretaceous level on the re-processed 1997 Repsol 2D seismic survey, Groundstar's 2008 2D seismic survey confirmed these structures.
An independent Resource Evaluation Report carried out by Gustavson Associates in Boulder Colorado resulted in a gross prospective oil resource estimate of 570 MMBO (P50).
Source: energy-pedia