Cairn to Abandon FD-1 Well Offshore Morocco

Cairn Energy has informed that is FD-1 wildcat exploration well offshore Morocco will be plugged and abandoned.

Cairn to Abandon FD-1 Well Offshore Morocco

The FD-1 exploration well is located in 1,500 metres (m) of water approximately 120km offshore Morocco in the Foum Draa block (Cairn 50% Working Interest (WI) and Operator). The primary target of the well was a Late Jurassic/Early Cretaceous deep-water turbidite slope fan and channel complex.
The FD-1 well has reached a Total Depth of 5,255m but has not encountered clastic reservoirs, although it has penetrated the oldest stratigraphic section of any deep water exploration well along the Moroccan margin. Gas shows and gas composition ratios encountered in the well have confirmed an active thermogenic petroleum system. The well is now being plugged and abandoned.
Cairn is the Operator through its wholly owned subsidiary Capricorn Exploration and Development Limited with Joint Venture partners ONHYM, San Leon Energy plc, Serica Energy plc and Longreach Oil & Gas Limited.
The next well in Cairn’s planned exploration programme is in the Juby Maritime III block in Morocco (Cairn 37.5% WI, Operator) and it will target a Middle Jurassic carbonate prospect located in 100m of water where the primary objective is some 1,000m below the 1969 Cap Juby oil discovery in the Upper Jurassic. Operations will start on Cap Juby once the FD-1 well has been successfully plugged and abandoned.

Simon Thomson, Chief Executive, Cairn Energy PLC said: “Cairn’s first well in a multi-well operated drilling programme in the Atlantic Margin did not encounter the target reservoirs but has confirmed a deep water hydrocarbon system. Further analysis of the data is required as a number of follow up exploration prospects on the Foum Draa block need to be evaluated. We look forward to commencing operations in the Juby Maritime well in the near future.”

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Press Release, December 20, 2013