Santos: Production from first Phase 3C well at Bayu-Undan ‘better than anticipated’

Australia’s Santos has started production from the Phase 3C infill drilling program at the Bayu-Undan field with the company reporting a better than anticipated outcome from the first well.

Santos said on Wednesday that the first well had been brought online at 178 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) of gas and 11,350 barrels per day (bbl/d) of liquids, significantly increasing liquids production to over 25,000 bbl/d from the field and increasing offshore well capacity for the supply of gas to the Darwin LNG plant.

To remind, Santos started the drilling campaign at the Timor-Leste Bayu-Undan field in late May.

The company added that the Noble Tom Prosser jack-up rig started drilling the second of the three wells, with the program expected to be completed early next year and will maximise value from the Bayu-Undan field.

Santos managing director and CEO Kevin Gallagher said: “We are delighted to see first production from the 3C program, which is immediately delivering value to both the Bayu-Undan joint venture and the people of Timor-Leste and importantly helps extend the life of Bayu-Undan and the jobs and investment that rely on it.

“Following the successful result from the first of the Van Gogh Phase 2 infill wells, today’s results are another example of Santos creating incremental value from acquired assets.

“We’ve seen a better than expected reservoir outcome with this first well of the campaign, with successful results across both the primary and secondary targets in the well and a much higher initial gas production rate than expected”.

The successful drilling and tie-in of the first of three new wells comes six months after a final investment decision and has lifted natural gas and liquids production for the field in Timor-Leste offshore waters.

President of the Timor-Leste regulator, Autoridade Nacional do Petróleo e Minerais (ANPM), Florentino Soares Ferreira said: “From the outset, the Phase 3C program has been seen as an opportunity to maximise the ultimate recovery in the Bayu-Undan field.

“Managing the mobilisation of the crews between Bayu-Undan and hotspot areas during the pandemic has been a challenging task, but with great synergy between the Operator and ANPM, the Phase 3C operation has been smooth.

“The successful result of the first 3C well has proven to us that our decision for approval was correct. We can now give additional hope to Timor-Leste with the increase of production and extension of the Bayu-Undan field life, and we look forward to the success of the two remaining 3C wells”.

Santos has a 43.4 per cent operated interest in Bayu-Undan. The remaining interest is held by SK E&S (25 per cent), Inpex (11.4 per cent), Eni (11 per cent), JERA (6.1 per cent), and Tokyo Gas (3.1 per cent).