U.S. oil producer Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC) said Thursday it had made a deepwater natural-gas discovery offshore Mozambique in a move that has the potential to open a new promising exploration frontier area for international producers: East Africa.
U.S. oil producer Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC) said Thursday it had
made a deepwater natural-gas discovery offshore Mozambique in a move that has
the potential to open a new promising exploration frontier area for
international producers: East Africa.
Houston-based Anadarko said the Windjammer exploration well in the
Rovuma
Basin
found
more than 480 net feet of natural gas pay in high-quality reservoir sands. While
the gas discovery isn't commercial given limited market, this well--the second
deepwater exploration well drilled offshore east Africa--is much more important
in reducing the risk of exploration in a massive block that is the size
equivalent of 400 Gulf of Mexico blocks, said UBS analyst William Featherston
in a note to clients.
"Located in a frontier basin, the well proved an active hydrocarbon system
and encountered high quality reservoir, trap, and seal," William said.
Bob Daniels, Anadarko's senior vice-president for worldwide exploration, said
in a statement that the gas discovery was "a strong indication of the
potential" of the
Rovuma
Basin
.
"The Windjammer discovery derisks a substantial portion of approximately
50 leads and prospects that we've identified across our 2.6-million-acre
position in the basin," he said.
Anadarko's drilling success in
Mozambique
comes
on the heels of a string of new oil discoveries the company has done in
West
Africa
, an area where Anadarko was also a pioneer and that now has become an
coveted region for major oil companies such as Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM). The oil
giant's $4 billion bid for Kosmos Energy LLC's stake in a giant oilfield in
offshore
Ghana
, one
of the world's most promising regions for oil exploration, is being met with
stiff resistance from that country's government.
Anadarko, which has a 43% interest in the well and acts as operator, said the
Windjammer well hasn't yet reached its final depth. After drilling finishes,
the company plans to move its rig to the Collier prospect, less than 50 miles
away.
"Anadarko also expects to drill two to four additional exploration wells
in the
Rovuma
Basin
this
year, with initial well results from Windjammer and Collier determining which
prospects are drilled next," the company said.
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