Noble Energy, Inc. announced today that it has ended drilling operations at the Leviathan #2 appraisal well location, offshore Israel. During the drilling process, the Company identified water flowing to the sea floor from the wellbore.
The source is a water sand that flowed behind the surface casing. It has been monitored closely and there are no indications of any hydrocarbons in the produced water. Drilling in the Leviathan #2 well had not yet reached the depth of the targeted gas intervals discovered in the Leviathan #1 well.
The Company has concluded that the current location and wellbore are unsuitable for continued drilling operations. As such, Noble Energy plans to relocate the drilling rig to a nearby location where it will resume the Leviathan natural gas appraisal drilling program.
Noble Energy operates Leviathan, offshore Israel in the Rachel and Amit licenses, with a 39.66 percent working interest. Other interest owners are Delek Drilling and Avner Oil Exploration with 22.67 percent each and Ratio Oil Exploration with the remaining 15 percent.
Noble Energy is a leading independent energy company engaged in worldwide oil and gas exploration and production. The Company has core operations onshore in the U.S., primarily in the DJ Basin, in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, offshore Eastern Mediterranean, and offshore West Africa. Noble Energy is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and is traded under the ticker symbol NBL.
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Source: Noble Energy, May 16, 2011;