The company drilled the Baja-1 well to a depth of 5,290m using the Noble Gerry de Souza in water depths of around 1,140m, which encountered 34m of net oil pay in a single interval within the Campanian formation
APA Corporation headquarters in Houston, Texas. (Credit: WhisperToMe/Wikipedia)
APA Corporation, the holding company of oil and gas producer Apache Corp., has made new oil discovery at Baja-1 well in Block 53, offshore Suriname.
The company drilled the Baja-1 to a depth of 5,290m using the Noble Gerry de Souza in water depths of approximately 1,140m.
Baja-1 encountered 34m of net oil pay in a single interval within the Campanian formation.
According to the preliminary fluid and log analysis, the discovery showed light oil with a gas-oil ratio (GOR) of 1,600 to 2,200 standard cubic feet per barrel, in good quality reservoir.
Its new discovery at Baja-1 is a down-dip lobe of the same depositional system as the Krabdagu discovery, 11.5kms to the west in Block 58, said APA.
The company is continuing evaluation of open-hole well logs, cores and reservoir fluids.
APA CEO and president John J Christmann said: “Our success at Baja marks the 6th oil discovery we have participated in offshore Suriname, and the first on Block 53.
“This result confirms our geologic model for the Campanian in the area and helps to de-risk other prospects in the southern portion of both Blocks 53 and 58.”
APA recently received regulatory approval for an amended Production Sharing Contract (PSC) for Block 53, which extends the exploration period for up to four years.
The company is currently progressing the formalisation of the election of the first one-year extension, for which all work commitments are complete.
APA holds a 45% working interest, and is operator of the Block 53, alongside Malaysian oil and gas company Petronas with 30% and Spanish oil and gas company CEPSA with 25%.
After completing its current operations at Block 53, the drillship Noble Gerry de Souza will be moved to Block 58, where it will drill the Awari prospect.
Furthermore, APA has completed the drilling at Dikkop-1 well in Block 58, which encountered water-bearing sandstones in the targeted interval.
The Block 58 is owned by French petroleum company TotalEnergies with 50% stake, which is also the operator of Block 58, with APA holding the remaining 50% stake.