Ithaca Energy (LON:IAE) has begun drilling the Hurricane appraisal well in Block 29/10b, which lies within the company’s Greater Stella Area in the UK sector of the Central North Sea.
The Ithaca-operated well is being drilled using the WilHunter semi-submersible rig. Ithaca has contracted the services of Applied Drilling Technologies International to manage drilling operations under ‘turnkey’ contract arrangements. The well programme is anticipated to take between 75 to 85 days to complete, including the performance of a drill stem test.
The Hurricane discovery well, 29/10-4z, was drilled by Shell in 1995. It encountered 41 degrees API light oil in Eocene Rogaland sands in the western lobe of the structure.
Ithaca’s appraisal well will be drilled to the base of the Tertiary section in the eastern lobe of the mapped structure and is designed to satisfy three primary objectives. They include confirming the nature and volume of recoverable hydrocarbons; calibrating the hydrocarbon contact with seismic amplitude and, finally, verifying the distribution, quality and connectivity of the reservoir,
Upon successful completion of the appraisal well objectives, the wellbore will be suspended for future re-entry and completion as a production well.
The Hurricane discovery lies within 10km of the FPF-1 floating production unit that will be installed as part of Ithaca’s development of the Stella and Harrier fields. The anticipated development of Hurricane would involve the tie-back of wells and subsea infrastructure to the FPF-1, providing a valuable incremental add-on to the ongoing development of the Greater Stella Area.
Independent consultants Sproule International have assigned net Proved and Probable reserves to Hurricane of 2.7 million barrels of oil equivalent, based on the well in the western lobe of the discovery, in its report dated December 31st, 2011.
Ithaca has a 54.66 percent interest in Block 29/10b and its joint venture partners include Dyas UK (25.34 percent) and Petrofac Energy Developments (20 percent).
