The oil discovery is located 24km west of the BP-operated Mad Dog field

oil-rig-2191711_640 (1)

BP is the operator of the Green Canyon Block 821. (Credit: C Morrison from Pixabay)

BP and its partners have made an oil discovery at the Puma West prospect on the Green Canyon Block 821 in the deepwater US Gulf of Mexico.

Located in in 4,108ft of water depth, the Puma West well was drilled to a total depth of 23,530ft, at which it intersected oil pay in a high-quality Miocene reservoir.

The oil pay is said to have fluid properties that are identical to productive Miocene reservoirs in the area, said BP.

The oil discovery is located 24km west of the company-operated Mad Dog field and is nearly 210km off the Louisiana coast.

According to BP, the discovery could contain commercial volume of hydrocarbons, based on preliminary data.

BP Gulf of Mexico and Canada senior vice president Starlee Sykes said: “Our resilient and focused hydrocarbons business is core to bp’s strategy, and in the Gulf of Mexico we invest and explore in the reservoirs we know best.

“We are using our seismic expertise and drilling capability to safely find and develop advantaged oil and gas. We look forward to evaluating the potential of this discovery and its competitiveness across bp’s global portfolio.”

BP is the operator of the Green Canyon Block 821, with a stake of 50% stake and is partnered by Talos Energy and Chevron, which have stakes of 25% each.

Talos Energy said that the co-owners of the block will start planning an appraisal programme for better defining the Puma West discovery.

The company said that the wellbore has been suspended as a keeper well for preserving its utility in the future.

Talos Energy president and CEO Timothy Duncan said: “Puma West is a great example of the class of high impact catalyst opportunities still available in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.

“Advancements in seismic technology, operational efficiency and safety at these depths, combined with ample available infrastructure, support robust project economics while also providing material domestic energy resources to consumers with a small environmental footprint.”

In another development, BP said that the Argos platform to be deployed at the $9bn Mad Dog 2 project, has reached the US after completing its journey from South Korea. Mad Dog 2, is slated to begin production, through the new floating production unit, in Q2 2022.