Only minor oil shows for Tullow in Suriname well

Oil and gas company Tullow Oil has encountered good quality reservoir but only minor oil shows at its exploration well located offshore Suriname.

Tullow started drilling operations at the Goliathberg-Voltzberg North prospect (GVN-1) located in Block 47 in late January 2021.

Block 47 is part of the Suriname-Guyana Basin. The well was drilled using the Stena Forth drillship. It is located approximately 280 km from the shores of Suriname.

In an update on Thursday, Tullow Oil said that the Goliathberg-Voltzberg North exploration well has reached total depth and encountered good quality reservoir but only minor oil shows.

The Stena Forth drillship drilled the Goliathberg-Voltzberg North well to a total depth of 5,060 metres in 1,856 metres of water and the well will now be plugged and abandoned.

The well tested dual targets in the Cretaceous turbidite play. It was one of a series of leads and prospects on the flank of the Demerara High.

Tullow said that, together with its partners, it will assess the data gathered from the well and carefully consider the next steps.

Tullow is the operator of Block 47 with a 50 per cent stake. Petroandina Resources Corporation N.V. (Pluspetrol) holds 30 per cent with Ratio Suriname Limited holding the remaining 20 per cent.

Following Tullow’s well, the Stena Forth drillship will mobilize for a CNOOC contract, which was awarded in October 2020. The start-up of operations in the Flemish Pass, offshore Newfoundland and Labrador, is expected between April 2021 and June 2021.

After that, the Stena Forth is expected to mobilize to the Mediterranean Sea offshore Israel between July and August 2021. The rig was hired by Noble Energy Mediterranean – a subsidiary of Chevron following its recent acquisition of Noble Energy.