Hurricane Energy: Light oil discovery at Warwick West

Hurricane Energy has made an oil discovery at its Warwick West well in the West of Shetland region.

The well was drilled to a total depth of 1,879 m TVDSS using the Transocean Leader drilling rig. It intersected a 931 m horizontal section of fractured basement reservoir.

Warwick West, spudded on September 24, is the third and final well of the 2019 Greater Warwick Area drilling program on Hurricane’s Lincoln and Warwick assets.

In an update on Monday, Hurricane Energy said: “The well flowed for a total of 85 hours in a number of flowing periods at variable rates, using both an electric submersible pump (“ESP”) and under natural flow, while work continued to clean the well and evaluate reservoir performance.

“A stable rate using an ESP could not be reliably measured as the well was still in the process of cleaning up. After an extended pressure build-up period, a final flow period was conducted under controlled natural flow conditions which achieved a stable, sustainable rate of 1,300 bopd with evidence of the well having cleaned up further. During this flowing period, less than 0.5% water was produced.”

Hurricane said that the initial analysis of oil samples at Warwick West indicated a light, 43° API oil.

Further analysis required

“Further technical analysis of PVT fluid samples will now be carried out. This will include comparing the geochemical signature of oil from Warwick West with oils procured from Warwick Deep and Lincoln Crestal,” Hurricane said.

The Warwick Deep and Lincoln Crestal were drilled earlier this year. Warwick Deep was the first in the three-well program on Hurricane’s Lincoln and Warwick assets. It was spud in mid-April and completed at the beginning of July with disappointing results.

The Lincoln Crestal well, the second well in the three-well program, was spudded in mid-July. In early September, a drill stem test produced oil to the surface, resulting in a flare. The results of testing of the Lincoln Crestal well confirmed the presence of light oil, which can be produced at commercial rates. The well will be tied-back to the Aoka Mizu FPSO in 2020.

As for the Warwick West well, the rig will now plug and abandon the well before demobilizing.

Hurricane and its joint venture partner on the GWA, Spirit Energy, are currently evaluating the results of the three wells drilled and tested in 2019. Further technical analysis will be required to determine the impact on the potential for the GWA to be a single accumulation, and on volumetrics, Hurricane Said.

 Robert Trice, Chief Executive of Hurricane, said:  “We are pleased to have made another discovery with the Warwick West well. The flow test results confirm the presence of light, mobile oil.

“The impact that this well will have on how the Company views the GWA accumulation and its associated volumetrics will require further technical analysis. The GWA joint venture is now assessing the optimal appraisal strategy for the GWA, and Hurricane will provide an update in due course.”

GWA partners Spirit Energy and Hurricane committed to a work program, which envisaged first oil by 2020 via Aoka Mizu FPSO tie-back, and the FID on the first phase of a full field development by 2021. Spirit Energy, which has recently been put up for sale by Centrica, will take on the role of GWA license operator, following successful drilling during 2019 and 2020.

The first phase would also fund the purchase of long-lead items to allow the tie-back of one or more GWA wells to the Aoka Mizu FPSO in 2020 and carry out host modifications of the Aoka Mizu.

Phase 2 is scheduled for 2020 assuming that Phase 1 is successful and FID is taken to proceed with the GWA well tie-back.

The second phase includes the tie-back of one GWA well to the Aoka Mizu, completion of host modifications of the Aoka Mizu, tie-in to the West of Shetland Pipeline (WOSP) system for gas export, allowing for first oil from an Early Production System (EPS) on the GWA in the fourth quarter of 2020.

Offshore Energy Today Staff

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