Brazilian oil and gas company HRT has commenced drilling its third offshore well in the Moosehead prospect, located in petroleum exploration license 24 (PEL 24), in the Orange basin, offshore Namibia.

The Moosehead-1 well will test a Cretaceous age, 546km2 four-way dip closure, mapped on a 3D PSDM seismic data set.

Objective is to test the oil potential of Barremian-aged carbonate reservoirs that are estimated to be equivalent to the pre-salt reservoirs in Brazil and Angola.

Several source rocks are expected to be penetrated, including the Aptian source rock, which is anticipated to be oil generating, according to HRT’s geochemical modeling.

HRT said it will use the Transocean Marianas semi-submersible rig in drilling Moosehead-1 to a water depth of to 1,727m and a total depth of 4,100m, while work is expected to last nearly 53 days.

GALP Energia with 14% participating interest is HRT’s partner in the current exploration program, which includes three wells.

HRT CEO Milton Franke said, "After drilling our first two wells in the Walvis Basin, we are now moving to the Orange Basin to drill our third well, and test a giant structure where the target reservoirs are equivalent to the Santos Basin sub-salt prospects, considered analogs."