AAOG finds rig for Tilapia drilling

Anglo African Oil & Gas plc has reached an agreement to source a drilling rig for a well at its Tilapia field offshore the Republic of the Congo. 

The Tilapia field is located 1.8 kilometers offshore of the Republic of the Congo, located in the Lower Republic of the Congo Basin. It is drilled from an onshore location and has production and storage facilities onshore.

Anglo African said Tuesday that it had entered into a rig option agreement (the “Rig Agreement”) with Société de Forage Pétroliers (“SFP”) for the provision of a rig to carry out drilling operations on well TLP-103C-ST at the Tilapia field.

“The Rig Agreement gives AAOG the right to contract the rig for TLP-103C-ST and a further four wells at our call. The SFP #1 Rig (the “Rig”) is the subject of contractual commitments to a super-major which will expire on 30 December 2019. SFP may extend such contractual commitments until (but not beyond) 30 March 2020 and will notify AAOG on or before 30 November 2019 as to whether its contractual commitments have been extended,” AAOG said.

Based on the schedule above, the drilling operation at AAOG’s well should begin either in the first or the second quarter of 2020.

Related: AAOG in Djeno discovery offshore Congo

AAOG said update the market once there is more certainty on timing, dependent on the rig’s current commitments.

Once the rig is secured, AAOG plans to re-enter the existing TLP-103C well and drill the new sidetrack just below the Mengo formation to test the Upper Djeno and explore the Middle Djeno formations. The objective is to determine whether the Djeno can be brought into production from either horizon.

Drilling activity is never without risk. However, the Directors believe that the sidetrack operations have an attractive risk/reward profile. TLP-103C has already proven the geological model and confirmed the presence of the Djeno at Tilapia. The fallback plan is to produce TLP-103C from the Mengo formation.

James Berwick, CEO said: “We are very pleased to have entered into the Rig Agreement and look forward to commencing operations at TLP-103C-ST as soon as the Rig becomes available. The Rig is the most suitable rig available in country and will come to TLP-103C-ST directly from drilling operations for a super-major. The Board of AAOG appreciate that drilling operations will commence later than we had hoped but, following the problems encountered in drilling TLP-103C, it was important that we found the right rig for this drilling campaign to avoid any similar issues.”

Offshore Energy Today Staff

Spotted a typo? Have something more to add to the story? Maybe a nice photo? Contact our editorial team via email.

Also, if you’re interested in showcasing your company, product, or technology on Offshore Energy Today, please contact us via our advertising form, where you can also see our media kit.