Drilling of an exploratory oil well in the Takutu Basin in Region Nine is progressing smoothly, Petroleum Division Manager at the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) Newell Dennison says.
Canada-based Groundstar Resources and its partners, Canacol Energy Limited and Sagres Energy Inc, are drilling an exploratory well-the Apoteri K-2–on their Karanambo prospect in the Takutu Basin. Groundstar holds a 10% net working interest in a petroleum prospecting licence while farm-in partner Canacol holds 65% and Sarges holds 25%. Groundstar remains operator of the block through to completion of the first exploratory well.
The block is 400 kilometres south of Georgetown.
Drilling had started on December 31 last year. The well is a 600-metre offset to Home Oil’s Karanambo-1 discovery well drilled in 1982. Mean recoverable prospective resources of 138 million barrels of oil were attributed to the Karanambo prospect in a 2009 report. “Drilling is progressing quite well so far,” Dennison said when contacted on Tuesday. He said that progress made was good and “at the rate at which they are progressing, one can anticipate an outside date for completion by the end of April.”
Groundstar Resources Limited is a Calgary-based junior oil and gas company actively pursuing international exploration and production opportunities.
The company currently has interests in several prospective oil and gas properties in the Middle East (Iraq), North Africa (Egypt), and South America (Guyana).
In November last year, Canacol completed a farm-out agreement with Sagres Energy Inc, whereby Sagres acquired a 25% interest in the exploration agreement by agreeing to fund 30% (US$1.25 million) of costs of drilling the K-2 exploration well, bringing Canacol’s net working interest to 65%. Under the terms of the agreement, Canacol and Sagres will carry Groundstar’s 10% remaining working interest until first commercial oil production.
The joint venture plans to drill the Apoteri K-2 well to a total measured depth of approximately 11,000 feet. If successful, the well will be put on a long-term production test to establish the deliverability and performance of the formations.
Plans for a second exploration well on the block by May 2011 are underway, with the choice of prospect (either the Rewa or the Pirara rivers) dependent on drilling results from Apoteri K-2, the company has said.
The second well will be operated by Canacol Energy; Groundstar will be carried for a 10% net interest.
In addition, another two wells are expected to be drilled here this year. Repsol and its partners including CGX Energy are expected to drill the Jaguar-1 well offshore Guyana. CGX Energy also plans to drill another well in its Corentyne Block.
