The well, located in Block 4 approximately 80km offshore southern Tanzania in a water depth of around 1 300m, is some 8km north-west of BG Group’s Pweza-1 gas discovery reported in October.
Chewa-1, operated by Ophir Energy (40%), is the second of a three-well initial work program planned for Blocks 1, 3 and 4 offshore southern Tanzania.
The initial work program also includes the acquisition of 4 000sq km of 3D seismic data.
BG Group (60%) has the option to assume operatorship of all three Blocks upon completion of the initial work program.
BG Group chief executive Frank Chapman said that this is an encouraging start to the company’s campaign in Tanzania.
"We have a large acreage position to explore and an extensive exploration program will be needed to assess the full potential of this new play," Chapman said.
