Eni hits gas in its first exploration well off Abu Dhabi

Italian oil and gas company Eni has made a gas discovery in its first exploration well in waters offshore Abu Dhabi.

Eni revealed on Thursday it is recording positive results from its first exploration well, XF-002, currently under drilling in offshore Block 2 Abu Dhabi (UAE) in 115 ft of water depth.

According to the Italian company, the well interim results indicate a range of 1.5-2 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of raw gas in place in multiple good quality reservoirs of the Jurassic exploration targets. The drilling operations will continue to reach the deeper exploration targets of the Khuff and Pre-Khuff Formations.

The size of the well final findings will be assessed after completing the well drilling in 2Q 2022.

Eni has a 70 per cent stake and is the operator of the Offshore Block 2, which was awarded in January 2019 as a result of the first-ever competitive bid round for exploration blocks launched by ADNOC. Thailand’s PTTEP holds the remaining 30 per cent.

In a separate statement on Thursday, ADNOC also confirmed the discovery, the first from Abu Dhabi’s offshore exploration concessions.

Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO, said: “The discovery of material natural gas resources in Offshore Block 2 underscores how ADNOC’s expanded approach to strategic partnerships is enabling us to accelerate the exploration and development of Abu Dhabi’s untapped hydrocarbon resources and create long-term value for the UAE, in line with the Leadership’s wise directives.”

Offshore Block 2 covers an area of 4,033 square kilometres northwest of Abu Dhabi. The discovery in the block was enabled by new insights from the world’s largest combined onshore and offshore three-dimensional (3D) mega seismic survey currently underway in Abu Dhabi.