Shell inks contracts for two blocks offshore Colombia

Colombia’s regulator Agencia Nacional de Hidrocarburos (ANH) and Shell have signed exploration and production contracts for two blocks offshore Colombia.

Source: ANH

Officials from Shell and the country’s regulator on Monday, March 11 signed the exploration and production contracts for the “COL 3” and “GUA OFF 3” blocks in the Colombian Caribbean Sea with an investment commitment of nearly $100 million in the first phase.

ANH President, Luis Miguel Morelli, said that Shell’s signing of the contracts signifies confidence of oil investors in the exploration of offshore resources in the Caribbean.

Morelli added: “Shell assumes investment commitments of more than 100 million dollars for the first phase of exploration in these two blocks. However, if Shell later decides to continue with the exploratory program of the following two phases, the investment in its entirety may exceed 650 million dollars.”

The exploration project, which corresponds to the blocks COL 3 (400,000 hectares) and GUA OFF 3 (480,000 hectares), will be developed in an area that, as a whole, covers 880,000 hectares.

Shell’s commitment for block COL 3 includes reprocessing of 3D seismic over an area close to 1,000 km2 , and the drilling of at least one exploration well in the first phase.

The contract for the block GUA OFF 3 includes a Minimum Exploratory Program (PEM) of three phases that includes the acquisition of 2,461 km2 of 3D seismic, the taking of 43 samples of Piston Core and the reprocessing of 3D seismic over an area close to 2,000 km2, in the first phase.

The agency estimates that if the PEMs are fully developed, the investment commitments could exceed $650 million.