SDX Energy makes further gas discovery in Morocco

Tuesday, 08 May 2018 06:48

The new gas discovery is in line with Morocco’s aims to boost new oil and gas potential in the country. (Image source: Jim Cahill/Flickr)SDX Energy Inc, the North Africa-focused oil and gas company, has made a conventional natural gas discovery at the LMS-1 exploration well on the Lalla Mimouna permit in Morocco, where the company has 75 per cent stake

Reporting to the press, SDX said that the LMS-1 well was drilled to a total depth of 1158 metres.

“The well encountered 16.4 metres of net conventional gas pay sands which had an average porosity of 32 per cent in an over-pressured section,” said the London-headquartered global oil and gas company.

“Similar to the previously drilled LNB-1, heavier gas shows were encountered indicating the presence of a deeper thermogenic source rock charging the structure. In addition, the cuttings showed evidence of fluorescence indicating the potential presence of liquid hydrocarbons within the section encountered,” the company added.

This is the second gas discovery by SDX within a period of one month in the North African country. In April 2018, SDX Energy announced a conventional natural gas discovery at its LNB-1 exploration well in Morocco.

Commenting about the recent gas discovery and the North African country’s oil and gas activities, Paul Welch, president and CEO of SDX, noted, “Similar to the LNB-1 discovery, this was a higher risk exploration prospect into a sequence that had not been previously penetrated in a similar structural location. We were prepared for the overpressures in this area and, as a result, have been able to successfully log and complete this well.”

“The results of our last two exploration wells have opened up a very significant new play area for us in the Gharb basin. Whilst the group is on track to double overall production in 2018, this provides us with the ability to further grow our reserves and production potential in Morocco, where we are targeting a four-fold increase in production from our current portfolio in the medium term,” Welch further added.

SDX is one of the front-runners in North Africa’s oil and gas sector. Recently, the company announced to make a new gas discovery at its Ibn Yunus-IX exploration well at South Disouq, Egypt. In 2017, the company was awarded gas discovery at KSR-14 and KSR-15 well on the Sebou area in Morocco. In 2016, SDX Energy and Dana Petroleum commenced drilling operations on its high-impact exploration well on Bakassi West in Cameroon, Central Africa’s major oil and gas project.