WoodMac deems recent US oil find as Gulf of America’s biggest discovery in eight years

August 29, 2025, by Melisa Cavcic

In the aftermath of a recent black gold discovery in the Gulf of America (GoA), formerly the U.S. Gulf of Mexico (GoM), Wood Mackenzie, an energy intelligence group, has provided its take on the significance of the new oil find, describing it as the region’s biggest discovery since 2017.

According to Wood Mackenzie’s Jessica Ciosek, Senior Manager of Energy Research, and James Blackwood, Research Analyst of Upstream, Talos Energy’s Daenerys discovery in the Walker Ridge area is the most material Gulf of America/Mexico oil find since Shell’s Whale in 2017.

Talos is the operator (27% working interest) with partners: Shell Offshore (22.5%), Red Willow (22.5%), Houston Energy (10%), Cathexis (9%), and HEQ II Daenerys (9%). Taking into account the provisions within the Trump administration’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act,’ the energy market intelligence provider is convinced that Talos’s latest oil find could lead to more discoveries.

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With its preliminary prospect valuation showing that peak production has the potential to hit 65,000 barrels per day, WoodMac points out that this oil find signifies a strategic shift for Talos, which previously focused on lower-risk infrastructure-led exploration (ILX) projects.

US firm hits oil pay in Gulf of America with Seadrill rig

Exploration & Production

Wood Mackenzie believes there is a potential for a tie-back to the Oxy-operated Heidelberg field or a new hub. The Daenerys exploration well in the Walker Ridge blocks 106, 107, 150, and 151 was drilled to a total vertical depth of 33,228 feet with Seadrill’s West Vela deepwater drillship approximately 12 days ahead of schedule and under budget.

As the energy intelligence group sees Daenerys as a confirmation of the Subsalt Miocene trend’s westward extension into an area that previously only held Paleogene-aged fields, it is convinced that it may increase competition in the Walker Ridge section during the latest lease sale, which is scheduled for December 2025.

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While Daenerys could generate over 50 million barrels of oil equivalent (mmboe) net proved reserves, the U.S. energy player has two more promising exploration prospects, Enterprise and Hershey, each with pre-drill estimates exceeding 100 mmboe, which indicates a shift into the high-impact exploration arena.