Drilling ops corroborate extent of Petrobras’ previous gas discovery offshore Colombia

Brazilian state-owned energy heavyweight Petrobras has carried out drilling operations in the Tayrona Block off the coast of Colombia, which enabled it to substantiate and verify the size of a gas discovery made two years ago.

Petrobras has managed to reach the main target of the Uchuva-2 well by confirming the extent of the gas discovery made in 2022 with the drilling of the Uchuva-1 well. The new well is in progress, with five phases, and the gas-bearing interval was verified at phase four through wireline logging, which will be further characterized through laboratory analyses.

With the prediction of carrying out a formation test by the end of 2024, the consortium, constituted by Petrobras as operator (working interest 44.44%), in partnership with Ecopetrol (working interest 55.56%), intends to continue operations to complete the project to drill the well to the expected depth and characterize the conditions of the reservoirs found.

Located in deep waters in Colombia, 31 kilometers off the coast and at a water depth of 804 meters, the Uchuva-2 well, spudded on June 19, 2024, is said to bring more information for the development of a new frontier of exploration and production in Colombia, reinforcing the volumetric potential for gas in the region.

“It is very satisfying for Ecopetrol to be able to confirm that we are on the right path to ensure that Colombians can count on new sources of natural gas before the end of the decade. This announcement confirms that the Colombian Caribbean has an important gas province that will offer energy security for the country,” explained Elsa Jeanneth Jaimes, Ecopetrol’s Vice President of Costa Afuera.

According to Petrobras, the operations in the Tayrona Block are aligned with its long-term strategy, targeting ways to replenish oil and gas reserves by exploring new frontiers and acting in partnership, ensuring that global energy demand is met during the energy transition.

While backing Petrobras’ claims, Colombia’s National Hydrocarbons Agency (Agencia Nacional de Hidrocarburos – ANH) said: “This significant advance provides crucial information for the development of this new production frontier in the Colombian Caribbean and reinforces the predicted gas potential in the region. […]

“For the ANH it is extremely satisfactory to be part of this new drilling project that will bring new sources of natural gas to the country. This advance not only reinforces our commitment to the country’s energy security, but also drives the transition towards more sustainable energy.”

Colombia is actively searching for more offshore gas to lessen its reliance on imports and Ecopetrol is making progress in the execution of the 2024-2034 roadmap, which seeks to guarantee the supply of natural gas to more than 40 million Colombians, with a plan that includes the maximization of production in the interior of the country and offshore in the Caribbean, in addition to energy imports.

Following a regasification proposal in volumes ranging from 50 to 350 million cubic feet per day for projects located in different areas from Buenaventura to La Guajira, Ecopetrol is analyzing the use of its infrastructure to facilitate the adoption of this type of solution in its assets.

Ricardo Roa Barragán, Ecopetrol’s President, underlined: “We have received eight proposals that we are evaluating, most of them are imported LNG. Another proposal is to develop very quickly liquefied gas reception infrastructure to regasify in our facilities and introduce it into the country through the Ballenas – Barranca gas pipeline.”