Apache Abandons L8 Block Offshore Kenya

Apache Coporation has announced that it will relinquish its share in the L8 block offshore Kenya.

The company last night sent an e-mail to Reuters in which it said that it was giving up its 50 percent stake in Kenya’s offshore L8 Block in the Lamu Basin, as they determined that other areas in their portfolio provided better opportunities for future capital investments. Apache became the operator of the block in June 2011, after acquiring a 50 percent share from Origin Energy.

The U.S.-based explorer last year announced that the Mbawa-1 exploration well, located in the L8 block, encountered approximately 52 metres of net gas pay in the primary target. It was the first natural gas discovery and the first ever hydrocarbon discovery offshore Kenya.

However, the deeper, secondary target did not contain hydrocarbons. The well was drilled using the Deepsea Metro-1 drillship.

Apache (50%) is the operator of the offshore Block L8 Licence along with partners Origin Energy (20%), Pancontinental (15%) and Tullow (15%).

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Offshore Energy Today Staff, October 09, 2013