Exxon resumes hunt for oil with second well in Canje Block

Mar 10, 2021 News

– Prospect estimated to hold one billion barrels of oil resources

Kaieteur News – Days after announcing that it had failed to find hydrocarbons in commercial amounts at the Bulletwood-1 Well in the Canje Block, Offshore Guyana, United States Oil Major ExxonMobil has since moved its contracted Stena Carron drillship, to the Jabillo-1 well location in the same block. Drilling at that location begins today.

The Jabillo-1 is the second of three exploration wells scheduled for drilling the Canje Block in 2021. Indirect partner in the Canje Block—Westmount Energy—made the announcement yesterday, following on previously published information indicating that Jabillo-1 is estimated to hold one billion barrels of oil with the well targeting a Late Cretaceous, Liza-age equivalent, basin floor fan.
The failed Bulletwood-1 well Bulletwood-1 was envisioned to hold about 500 million barrels.
The Canje Block is operated by ExxonMobil which holds a 35 per cent stake, along with French oil producer Total, JHI Associates Inc. and Mid-Atlantic Oil and Gas Inc.
Westmount holds a 7.7 per cent interest in the issued share capital of JHI Associates Inc.
The Canje Block is located adjacent to the Stabroek Block, where ExxonMobil has made 18 oil successful discoveries with more just about nine billion barrels of proven oil reserves.
ExxonMobil currently produces oil from the Liza field in the Stabroek block, utilizing the Liza Destiny Floating Production Storage and Offloading Vessel (FPSO).
The company plans to have six FPSOs producing in the block by 2026.
ExxonMobil is scheduled to drill at least 10 exploration and appraisal wells in 2021 in the Stabroek block.
Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL), ExxonMobil’s local subsidiary, reporting on the Bulletwood-1—the first well in the Canje Block had noted that the data analysed “confirmed our seismic interpretation of the geology and shown evidence of non-commercial hydrocarbons.”
That well “was safely drilled in 2,846 meters of water by the Stena Carron drillship to its planned target depth of 6,690 meters. The well encountered quality reservoirs but non-commercial hydrocarbons…” Westmount said.
It was noted at the time too that the data collection at Bulletwood-1 confirmed the presence of the Guyana-Suriname basin petroleum system and the potential prospectivity of the block.
Bulletwood-1, was the first of three Canje wells planned for exploration in 2021, was estimated to hold a few hundred million barrels. Drilling of Jabillo-1 and Sapote-1 will follow in the coming months.
ExxonMobil last year said it has identified considerable undrilled potential of more than 50 leads in the blocks it operates in Guyana’s offshore Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
The oil major has announced plans to do more drilling in prospects targeted in the Kaieteur, Canje and Stabroek Blocks.
ExxonMobil currently operates offshore Guyana holding stakes in 11 million along with a number of partners making up the three consortia, which own the licences.
The company in its exploration campaign in Guyana recently made a discovery in the Kaieteur Block, while drilling its first well there and deepest by far offshore Guyana.
In 2019, ExxonMobil relinquished a portion of the Canje Block under the terms of the exploration licence, reducing the size of the contract area from 6,100 square kilometers (sq. km.) to 4,800 sq. km.
It is anticipated that with just over a dozen initial prospects identified for exploration in the Canje Block, it will yield some 10 billion barrels of oil.