Africa Oil Corp has announced drill stem test results for the Luiperd-1X well, the second major discovery on Block 11B/12B offshore South Africa
The company holds an indirect interest in the project as a result of its equity interests in Africa Energy Corp (19.9%) and Impact Oil & Gas Limited (31.1%).
Jan Maier, Africa Energy's vice president-exploration, commented, “The Luiperd discovery proves that the Outeniqua Basin offshore South Africa is a world-class hydrocarbon province that remains highly underexplored. Luiperd-1X intersected 85m gross sands, of which 73m is net good quality pay in the main target interval and thicker than prognosed. The well reached a total depth of approximately 3,400m on 12 October, 2020, at which point the drill stem testing programme was initiated. We are very pleased with the positive test results that show high condensate yield and excellent reservoir connectivity.”
The Luiperd-1X well was opened to flow on 1 November, 2020. After several tests at different choke settings, the well reached a maximum constrained flowrate through a 58/64" choke of 33 mcfpd of natural gas and 4,320 barrels of condensate per day, an aggregate of approximately 9,820 boepd.
Block 11B/12B is located in the Outeniqua Basin 175km off the southern coast of South Africa. The block covers an area of approximately 19,000sq km with water depths ranging from 200 to 1,800m. The Paddavissie Fairway in the southwest corner of the block now includes both the Brulpadda and Luiperd discoveries, confirming the prolific petroleum system. The original five submarine fan prospects in the fairway all have direct hydrocarbon indicators as recorded on both 2D and 3D seismic data and intersected in the wells, significantly de-risking future exploration.
Keith Hill, Africa Oil's president and CEO, said, “The high condensate rate achieved, even though restricted by surface testing equipment limitations, is excellent news and will greatly enhance the economics of the development. We believe Luiperd and Brulpadda can potentially support a significant commercial development, and i congratulate the Block 11B/12B JV partners for a very successful Luiperd-1X drilling and testing programme.”
