A single well location can now be pinpointed at Oryx prospect. (Image source: Pancontinental Energy)

Pancontinental Energy has released revised estimates of prospective resources for the company's PEL 87 project, Orange Basin offshore Namibia

Pancontinental chief executive officer, Iain Smith, said, "The Pancontinental technical team continues to deliver, such that we are now able to pinpoint a single well location at the Oryx prospect that offers oil potential at three discrete intervals for a combined 2.5 billion barrels of High Case prospective resource, with a Geological Chance of Success upgraded to 26.2%."

The Oryx prospect now incorporates the prospective features previously identified as the Calypso and Addax Channel leads, due to the fact that it has been determined that all three targets may be effectively tested by a single exploration well. As a result the High Case (3U) prospective resource estimate (gross, 100%) for Oryx now stands at over 2.5bn barrels of oil, recoverable.

Of note is that, in general terms, it is the Best Case (2U) prospective resource estimates which have most benefited from the revised inputs, in particular for Oryx and Hyrax (due to their relative maturity, as prospects). The Low Case (1U) and High Case (3U) for each prospect/lead is affected to a lesser degree and the prospective resource estimates for the Addax Fan and Addax South leads remain unchanged, as does the GCoS. The GCoS for the remainder of the prospect/lead inventory has increased, based upon seismic synthetic modelling which provides positive indications for a hydrocarbon fluid effect (interpreted as a low gas-oil-ratio oil). As such the estimated GCoS for the main Oryx prospect now stands at 26.2% (previous estimate 22.5%).

QI screening is currently on, generating a mapping of an additional prospective feature, external to the Saturn Complex. The Phoebe West lead is interpreted as an Albian-to-Aptian basinal turbidite fan feature fed by a long-lived northern channel clastic bypass depositional system. Interpretation of this feature is ongoing at this time and Pancontinental anticipates providing further detail soon.

The partners will conduct a high-resolution gravity survey. (Image source: 88 Energy)

88 Energy Limited has secured license extension for 12 months from the Namibian Government, extending the PEL 93 First Renewal Exploration Period to 2 October 2026

During the extended period the company will aim datasets Integration to select drilling location, and complete an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for drilling. 

The PEL 93 is located in the Owambo Basin, onshore Namibia.

A farmout agreement with Monitor Exploration Limited for a joint venture gives 88 Energy Limited a 20% working interest in PEL 93. By way of an amendment on the agreement, the partners have introduced a new stage 1A work programme to target pre-drill de-risking.

The 2024 2D seismic data collected from an anticlinal structure -- Lead 9 -- spreading across 100 sq km has led to new insights to be unlocked from a gravity survey area. The partners have hence included on the programme a high-resolution gravity survey to focus on the southern area of PEL 93. The survey will be supplemented by radiometric data. 

This anticipation has been strengthened by similar findings from the Kavango West 1X exploration well where ReconAfrica is now all set to start drilling this month. 

Lead 9 is similar to Recon’s imminent Kavango West 1X well in that both show a very large and robust structural closure including the shallow clastic reservoirs, the deeper Otavi carbonate reservoir seen in Naingopo-1 and the deeper source rocks.

Monitor's statement read, “Our early results are pointing to something potentially significant in the southern area of PEL 93 in the Owambo Basin. With multiple datasets aligning and the prospect of even larger structures emerging, the Joint Venture is building momentum towards a drilling event and what could be a basin opening discovery with broad implications for all of Namibia given the significance in unlocking a major new hydrocarbon play.” 

DUG Elastic MP-FWI Imaging is a unique approach to seismic processing and imaging. (Image source: DUG)

DUG has released the latest results from its elastic multi-parameter full waveform inversion (MP-FWI) imaging technology which it launched in 2022, since when more than 70 successful projects have been completed worldwide

DUG Elastic MP-FWI Imaging is a unique approach to seismic processing and imaging which is not only a complete replacement for the traditional processing and imaging workflows, it also replaces the subsequent inversion workflow for elastic rock properties.

With the traditional processing workflow, projects can take many months to years to complete. It involves the testing and application of dozens of steps such as deghosting, designature, demultiple and regularisation, all designed to overcome the limitations of conventional imaging. These workflows are complex, subjective, and very time-consuming and they rely on many assumptions and simplifications. All of these issues impact the output data quality. The resulting, primary-only data then undergoes a similarly complex model-building workflow to derive an estimate of the subsurface velocity, which is used for depth imaging. Post-migration processing is performed before the pre-stack reflectivity undergoes another workflow to derive rock properties that feed into interpretation, also relying on simplifications of the actual physics.

As well as three-component reflectivity and velocity, DUG Elastic MP-FWI Imaging enables the estimation of fundamental rock properties like P-impedance, density and Vp/Vs from field data, without the need for a secondary amplitude variation with angle (AVA) inversion step. DUG Elastic MP-FWI Imaging simultaneously resolves not only subsurface structural features but also quantitative rock property information while avoiding the need for extensive data pre-processing and (post-imaging) AVA-inversion workflows.

“Elastic MP-FWI Imaging accounts for both compressional and shear waves, handling variations in seismic wave dynamics as a function of incidence angle, including in the presence of high impedance contrasts and onshore near-surface geological complexity,” said Tom Rayment, DUG chief geophysicist. “Multiples and converted waves are now treated as valuable additional signal, increasing sampling, resolution and constraining the inverted parameters.”

DUG managing director, Dr Matthew Lamont, added, “We have invested over a decade of R&D to realise this opportunity. Our new Elastic MP-FWI Imaging technology is the product of a multi-year, significant and ongoing R&D effort, which has seen the continuous integration of complete-physics FWI imaging including viscoelasticity, anisotropy and multi-parameter updates. When using the full wavefield for simultaneous velocity model building, rock property inversion and true-amplitude imaging, a multi-parameter solution is a necessity.”

“The fact that DUG MP-FWI Imaging is delivering material imaging uplifts using field-data input is very powerful, but to couple this with high-resolution elastic rock property outputs for quantitative interpretation is even more exciting, providing immediate opportunities for new surveys and maximising the value of legacy datasets,” said Martin Stupel, geophysical manager, Geophysical Pursuit Inc.

Geo Exploration anticipates an yield of approximately 4.31 billion barrels from PEL94. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

With two new sandstone leads identified from petroleum exploration licence (PEL) 94 in Block 2011A offshore Namibia following an independent geoscience evaluation, Geo Exploration Limited has confirmed a materially de‑risked resource base  

The sandstone leads are Emerald (in the Albian) and Beryl (in the Cenomanian), which has a combined value of 792 MMbbl of unrisked gross mean prospective resources, with 726 MMbbl attributable to Emerald and 66 MMbbl to Beryl. 

Geo Exploration, which holds a 78% working interest in PEL94, is anticipating an yield of approximately 4.31 billion barrels.

Seismic mapping has delineated robust, dip and fault‑bounded structural closures. The seismic data interpretation has also highlighted direct hydrocarbon indicators in the area—including gas
chimneys and flat spots—providing strong evidence for an active petroleum system, migration of hydrocarbons throughout the section and therefore increasing the chance that the leads are charged with oil. The water depth is c.750 m at the location of the leads identified. 

The promising seismic results have encouraged the company to move ahead with potential farm-out agreements.

Omar Ahmad, chief executive officer of Geo Exploration, said, "Before commenting on these exciting results, I would first like to congratulate Her Excellency Dr Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah on her appointment as President of Namibia and Victoria Sibeya on her appointment as Acting Managing Director of the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (NAMCOR). I would like to thank Petroleum Commissioner Maggy Shino, the Namibia Ministry of Mines and Energy and our partners for their continued support to Geo.

Today's resource upgrade underscores the tremendous potential we see in PEL 94 and the strong conviction we have in our Namibian licence. Our technical team has done a terrific job delivering
new, material leads on the eastern side of the block. With excitement building across Namibia—and particularly in the Walvis Basin—we are actively progressing farm-out discussions to secure the best outcome for our shareholders"