Eco receives environment clearance to drill PEL 30 offshore Namibia

Created: Friday, 28 September 2018 06:55

Namibia boosts its oil and gas exploration activities in the region. (Image source: 12019/Pixabay)Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas Ltd, an oil exploration-focused company with licences in offshore Guyana and Namibia, has received the necessary final environmental clearance certificate to drill an exploration well on this highly prospective block from the Namibia Ministry of Environment and Tourism

The company has completed seven years of exploration on the Cooper Block, including regional geological studies, fracture analysis, slick studies, the review and interpretation of 5,000 sq km of 2D and an 1,100 sq km 3D Survey. In addition to its own ongoing interpretation, Eco has also contracted independent studies from Petroleum Geo-Services, Azinam Ltd, Tullow Oil plc and Gustavson Associates.

Eco and its partners have identified the “Osprey” prospect on the Cooper Block, an 882 mmbbl Aptian/Albian target within a sand-filled channel and fan system in the Cretaceous sequence. The prospect is estimated to contain as much as 882 mmbbl of oil equivalent (Gross Prospective – Best). The licence partners on the Cooper Block continue to contribute their own independent analysis and to work towards determining an exact location for the drilling of an exploration well on the “Osprey” prospect.

Colin Kinley, chief operating officer of Eco, commented, “With the final environmental certificates now in place, we anticipate moving shortly to the selection of drilling location, rig contract discussions and engineering planning for a well in Q3 2019 or Q1 2020.”

“The company’s strategy in Namibia has been to maintain a careful and cautious pace, to fully and completely understand the region and to de-risk each asset by using industry learnings, successes and experience. We have used each well drilled in the region to our advantage. To the south of the Cooper Block, PEL 37 was recently drilled by Tullow, and although it was disappointing commercially for our partners and friends, it has provided Eco with valuable data to help better understand the characteristics of our field. The well has provided us with key markers and our team will use these to our advantage as we move towards drilling.”

Activity in the Walvis Basin

Eco continues to monitor activity in the acreage surrounding Eco’s licence interests offshore Namibia and gathering information from the current drilling activity in the region. Upon completion of the Plug and Abandonment of the Cormorant-1 drilled by Tullow Oil plc on licence area PEL 37 in the Walvis Basis, the drill rig used of the Comorant-1 will move to licence area PEL 71 which is operated by Chariot Oil & Gas Limited (partnered with Azinam Ltd and NAMCOR).

Eco holds an 80 per cent interest in the Tamar Block (PEL 50), covering 7,500 sq km adjacent to PEL 71, and is considering the same channel and fan systems that lead on to PEL 50. Accordingly, the Company will monitor the results of the well on PEL 71 and will further analyse them once the well has been completed.