Highlights
- Two appraisal wells to be drilled in Block 9 PSC (Melbana 30% and operator)
- Purpose is to assess oil qualities and reservoir characteristics of the three independent formations containing moveable hydrocarbons encountered drilling Alameda-1
- These three reservoirs have been independently assessed to contain:
• 6.4 billion barrels of oil in place
• 362 million barrels of Prospective Resource (gross unrisked mean estimate basis)1
- Permits for three additional pad locations are also being pursued to provide different step out options for additional wells
- Principal contractors and the project team to remain largely unchanged
- Melbana fully funded for its share of costs of this appraisal program
Melbana Energy Limited is pleased to report that an initial two well appraisal program in Block 9 PSC (Melbana 30%) is to be drilled starting in Q1 2023.
Melbana Energy’s Executive Chairman, Andrew Purcell, commented: “Preparations are well underway to drill two appraisal wells off the same pad where we drilled our first well. We’ll be testing all three of the reservoirs where we previously encountered strong oil shows whilst drilling Alameda-1 and we’re preparing for production tests to be run for extended periods, should they be warranted. We’re looking forward to commencing this exciting work in the new year and to hopefully beginning the next chapter of our journey in Cuba as an oil producer.”
1 Prospective Resources Cautionary Statement – The estimated quantities of petroleum that may potentially be recovered by the application of a future development project(s) related to undiscovered accumulations. These estimates have both an associated risk of discovery and a risk of development. Future exploration appraisal and evaluation is required to determine the existence of a significant quantity of potentially moveable hydrocarbons. All quoted volumes have been taken from Independent Expert McDaniel & Associates Competent Persons Report dated 8 March 2022, 4 July 2022 and 28 July 2022. Melbana is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information included in that
announcement and that all the material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning the estimates in the announcement continue to apply and have not materially changed.
The drilling of the Alameda-1 exploration well in 2021/2022 resulted in our gaining a deeper understanding of the subsurface geology in Block 9 as well as valuable experience in drilling these types of formations in Cuba. We encountered significant gross intervals of moveable hydrocarbons in each of the three reservoirs we encountered, but they were often under higher pressure than we were expecting. Whilst generally a good thing, as it can be a predictor of good reservoir performance, the exploration well we designed had its contingencies thoroughly tested and as a result we were unable to collect clean samples of the oil that flowed at us or conduct tests to determine the performance characteristics of these reservoirs.
The wells we have designed for the appraisal program beginning in the new year can handle the drilling conditions we now know we will encounter, plus our drilling team and their contractors have gained a lot of experience from the two wells they have drilled together in Cuba.
Planning for the appraisal program also contemplates that the wells may be put on extended production tests. In that case, production will be held in tanks on site then trucked as necessary to the nearest oil battery some 50 kilometres away (as is currently the practice for other producing fields nearby).
Melbana will provide more information on this appraisal program, for which it is fully funded, at next week’s Annual General Meeting of shareholders.