Two Appraisal Wells to be Drilled at SNE Field in 2017

FAR Ltd and its Senegal joint venture partners have agreed to drill two appraisal wells on the SNE oil field.

The wells will be drilled in order to optimize the SNE field development plan before submission to the Government of Senegal for approval, according to a FAR statement. The joint venture has completed a rig tender evaluation process and executed contracts for the use of the Stena DrillMAX (UDW drillship) drillship for the two well drilling program, which is scheduled to commence in the first quarter of 2017.

The drilling and evaluation plan is for SNE-5 to undergo drill stem testing and have permanent gauges placed in the upper reservoir units. SNE-6 is to be drilled immediately after SNE-5, and it is also expected to undergo an extended DST program in order to generate a pulse that will be registered in the gauges installed within the upper reservoir section at SNE-5 and SNE-3.

Successful flow and interference test results that support connected reservoir units are expected to lead to higher than currently estimated ultimate oil recoveries by FAR from these reservoir units.

The joint venture is progressing towards the submission of a development plan for the SNE field as quickly and efficiently as possible, FAR says, with pre-FEED activities currently focused on determining the final project size and scope. The SNE-5 and SNE-6 wells are expected to provide important data for SNE reservoir.

“We look forward to the results from the next phase of drilling and evaluation activity over our world class SNE oil field, offshore Senegal,” FAR managing director, Cath Norman, said.

“The Stena Drillmax has completed an efficient drilling program elsewhere offshore West Africa and is currently located in Las Palmas. After a rigorous tender process, our joint venture has been able to secure the rig at a very attractive operating day rate, reflecting current market conditions and at a substantially lower cost than our two previous drilling campaigns. We look forward to providing updates in the coming weeks regarding expected spud date,” Norman added.