The company expects to begin the oil targeted development drilling program during the week of June 21, 2010.
El Valle has three productive sedimentary formations, which, in order of surface to deepest, are the Canadon Seco, Caleta Olivia and Mina el Carmen. Each of these formations may contain multiple discrete hydrocarbon bearing zones, according to the company.
EV-22, a twin of a well, was drilled in the 1969 and was abandoned despite giving excellent petro-physical properties on logs in the sandstone layers of the middle Canadon Seco and Caleta Olivia formations, the company said.
EV-23 has three primary geological objectives. The first (in order of drilling depth) is medium grade oil in the discrete sandstone layers in the upper and middle sections of the Canadon Seco formation. The second objective is light oil in sandstone layers in the middle Caleta Olivia formation and the third is targeting light oil in tuffaceous sandstones in the Mina el Carmen formation.
For EV-24, the company is targeting the upper and middle Canadon Seco and the middle Caleta Olivia formations, with a secondary target in the tuffaceous layers of the Mina el Carmen formation.
The company estimates that it will take between 35 and 50 days to drill, complete, test and equip the three wells depending on the complexity of the completion program for each well.
