Cairn Energy, as Operator, announced this morning that drilling operations have commenced with the FD-1 wildcat exploration well using the Cajun Express, a fifth generation semi-submersible drilling unit.
The well is located in 1,500m of water approximately 120km offshore and will test the F prospect, a slope apron clastic fan of Cretaceous/Jurassic age. The planned total drilling depth is 5,500m True Vertical Depth Sub Sea (TVDSS) and operations are anticipated to take approximately 60 days.
Serica has an 8.33% interest in the Foum Draa licence and is carried on the drilling costs of the well up to a gross cap of $60m with an expected limited contribution above this level.
The Foum Draa licence extends over an area of 3,300 square kilometres approximately 150 km south west of Agadir and lies in a highly underexplored area of the Atlantic Margin with water depths ranging between 1,000 and 2,000m.
A large number of salt diapir related and stratigraphic traps have been mapped on the block. The FD-1 wildcat is drilling a play type previously untested offshore Morocco.
Serica Energy chairman and interim CEO Tony Craven Walker said, "The spudding of the FD-1 well is the start of what we hope will be an exciting period of drilling for Serica, which kicks off with two wells in our acreage offshore Morocco."
