UK-based Premier Oil has been awarded Block 30 in the Sureste Basin and Blocks 11 and 13 in the Burgos Basin, in Mexico’s Round 3.1 offshore auction held in Mexico City.
UK-based Premier Oil has been awarded Block 30 in the Sureste Basin and Blocks 11 and 13 in the Burgos Basin, in Mexico’s Round 3.1 offshore auction held in Mexico City.
Premier (30 per cent), together with its joint venture partners DEA (operator, 40 per cent) and Sapura Energy (30 per cent), has been awarded Block 30 in the shallow water Sureste basin, a proven and prolific hydrocarbon province in the Gulf of Mexico. Block 30 is located directly to the south west of Premier’s world-class Zama discovery and to the north of the Amoca oil field.
Premier said it has identified numerous material leads and prospects on Block 30 in the Tertiary clastic plays, typical of the Sureste Basin. Several of the prospects identified exhibit DHIs (direct hydrocarbon indicators) on existing 3D seismic, significantly de-risking the potential of this block. These anomalies are similar to those seen at the Zama and Amoca oil fields.
Going forward the plan is to acquire further 3D seismic in 2019 ahead of firming up drilling locations for 2020.
Tony Durrant, CEO, commented: "The outcome of this highly competitive licensing round is a fantastic success for Premier and its partners. We are delighted to have been awarded Block 30, the most contested block in the Round. This award increases our footprint in the prolific, shallow water part of the Sureste Basin."
Premier has been awarded 100 per cent operated interests in Blocks 11 and 13 in the Burgos Basin where Premier has leveraged its growing understanding of the Mexican shelf to gain early access to this highly prospective basin directly inboard of the prolific deep water Perdido fold belt.
The initial work programme includes reprocessing existing 3D seismic which will enable Premier to better define the trapping geometries in the extensional play setting and to de-risk a potentially material oil play.
The CEO added: "The award of Blocks 11 and 13 provides us with a low cost entry into the Burgos basin, where we will look to repeat the first mover advantage we enjoyed in the Sureste Basin with the Zama discovery. The awards significantly enhance our existing acreage position in Mexico and have the potential to deliver significant organic growth for our business in the longer term."
Source: Pipeline ME
