Appraisal ops uplift recoverable reserves at field offshore Gabon

Oslo-listed oil and gas E&P player BW Energy has confirmed a boost in recoverable reserves at a field in the Dussafu license off the coast of Gabon, following the drilling and the logging of a pilot appraisal well with a jack-up rig owned by Borr Drilling, an offshore drilling contractor.

After an oil discovery on the northern flank of the Hibiscus field was disclosed in May 2024, BW Energy proceeded to conclude the drilling and the logging of the DHIBM-7P pilot well, confirming a substantial oil discovery in the process with good reservoir quality and a material uplift to the Hibiscus area.

The target area is around 1.5 kilometers north-northwest of the MaBoMo production platform from which the DHIBM-7P pilot was drilled to a total depth of 3,941 meters with Borr Drilling’s Norve jack-up rig.

The hydrocarbon column, which extends across the boundary between the Gamba and the underlying Dentale formation, is believed to be the first example of a common Gamba-Dentale hydrocarbon accumulation in the Hibiscus field.

The Oslo-listed player’s preliminary evaluation indicates an increase in the Hibiscus gross recoverable mid-case reserves of approximately 8 to 12 million barrels of oil. As a result, the firm plans to complete the well as a development one this year.

According to BW Energy, the current operation in Dussafu is to complete the DHBSM-2H development well in the northern flank of the Hibiscus South field that was recently appraised, confirming around 25 meters of pay in an overall hydrocarbon column of 35 meters in the Gamba formation.

While BW Energy has a 73.5% interest in the Dussafu permit offshore Gabon, Panoro Energy holds the remaining 17.5% participating interest. The Hibiscus/Ruche development project, located about 20 kilometers northwest of the Tortue field, targets the Hibiscus and Ruche fields offshore Gabon. 

The oil produced at the project is transported by pipeline to the FPSO BW Adolo for processing and storage before being offloaded to export tankers.