ION shoots Panama’s first seismic in 30 years

Seismic survey company ION Geophysical has informed that a new 2D multi-client program offshore Panama is in progress.

Supported by industry funding, this is the first seismic survey acquired there in approximately 30 years.

The survey is designed to provide the framework to evaluate the hydrocarbon potential of this unexplored area ahead of the anticipated inaugural license round.

According to ION, following a recent exploration success offshore Colombia immediately adjacent to Panama’s Caribbean coast, E&P companies are becoming increasingly interested in high-quality seismic data in this area to understand the potential hydrocarbon prospectivity.

Initial deliverables will be available in Q4 2017 and complete interpretation of the data will be available by mid-2018 to guide investment strategies, the company said.

The National Energy Secretary of Panama, Víctor Urrutia, said, “Hydrocarbon exploration in Panama has identified various sedimentary basins, proving the existence of geological structures that may contain oil and gas, although there hasn’t been a commercially exploitable discovery. Today, through the use of new and more sophisticated techniques, it is possible to identify prospective areas that previously were not considered economically viable, such as deep water deposits and/or those that are geologically more difficult to locate.

“The initiation of this seismic survey will provide high-value information to help assess Panama’s oil and natural gas prospectivity. We value the geological and geophysical expertise ION is providing to this process and are confident they will deliver the products and understanding required for proper evaluation. We look forward to working with them throughout this process.”

“The unique survey design will provide a better understanding of the hydrocarbon potential offshore Panama,” commented Joe Gagliardi, SVP of ION’s Ventures group. “We will deliver the highest quality products and geologic insight to properly evaluate the exploration potential offshore Panama that our clients have come to expect from BasinSPAN programs.”