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Rabat – Italian oil company ENI has secured a rig for a drilling program in the Rabat Deep Offshore licence in Morocco. The drilling is expected to kickstart shortly after the arrival of the rig on location by late Q1 2018.
According to a statement made this Thursday by its partner company Chariot Oil and Gas Limited, which owns 10 percent of the licence, ENI deployed a sixth generation ultra-deepwater drillship, called Saipem 12000, for the program, which includes a one-well drilling slot in Rabat Deep Offshore (RD-1).
The company anticipates that the rig will arrive on location in the latter part of the first quarter of 2018 and that the drilling of the RD-1 well, targeting the JP-1 prospect, will start shortly thereafter
Chariot explained in its statement that the JP-1 prospect is a large, four-way dip closed structure over about 200 square kilometers, with “Jurassic carbonate primary reservoir objectives and an independently audited gross mean prospective resource estimate of 768 MMbbl.”
Larry Bottomley, Chariot CEO, said that the JP-1 “has the potential to create transformational value in the success case due to the large scale prospective resources, excellent commercial contract terms and robust economics.” He added that this success “will also materially de-risk other targets we have identified within our neighbouring Mohammedia and Kenitra permits in which Chariot holds a 75 percent interest.”
Back in January, ENI partnered with Chariot in return for a capped carry on the drilling of the JP-1 prospect as well as a carry on other geological and administrative costs relating to Rabat Deep Offshore and a recovery of Chariot’s investment prior to farm-out.
Eni is one of the four operators of the Rabat Deep Offshore license, holding 40 percent of interests, while its partners Woodside, ONHYM and Chariot hold 25, 25, and 10 percent respectively.
