joel.julien@guardian.co.tt
BHP has confirmed that its Calypso appraisal well Bongos-3 in T&T has encountered hydrocarbons.
This well was spud on July 27, 2021.
BHP also indicated that a side track Bongos 3X, is currently being drilled to complete the appraisal.
In addition, the company stated that the Bongos-4 well, which was spud on August 6, 2021, is currently suspended, and operations are due to recommence following the completion of the Bongos-3X operations.
The operational review also confirmed that Bongos 3X and 4 are targeting gas.
Earlier this year the company’s Country Manager for T&T, Michael Stone told Guardian Media that the appraisal activity in Calypso will help determine the actual size of the discovery it made in its Northern License.
Stone said, “We have announced publicly a 3.5 tcf discovered resource, but beginning in the middle of this calender year, hopefully June or July, we are going to have an appraisal programme, subject to the rig becoming available to us, that is what the timing is dependent on, it is that appraisal programme Curtis, that is going to help us do that very delineation.”
He added, “So we would expect on the back end of that delineation programme, towards the end of the calender year, we will be in a position to be clearer on the resource size and of course there will always be a range and we are hoping if successful to add to the 3.5 discovered resource that we have announced publicly.”
Stone said the plan remained to have some of the natural gas sold into Atlantic LNG and then exported to global markets. He explained that due to the complexity and cost of deep-water drilling and production, it made sense to produce part of it for LNG.
“A resource of this size and scale and in addition a deep water resource, I mean a deep water resource, of course carries a different cost structure just by nature of the deeper wells and complex infrastructure required to bring it to shore, yes LNG is going to be an important component of the Calypso development. It is going to be necessary for some component of that gas to make it into the international market to attract and international indexed price, so yes LNG is an important part of the Calypso development.” Stone explained.
He said the company was hoping that the blocks that are adjacent to the Calypso field, but are in Barbados waters, will also prove to be successful.
In the operational update BHP also announced that the Barbados government had approved its seismic programme.
The Barbados government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with this country to produce and commercial gas found in T&T.
Stone announced that seismic surveys will be done in the Barbados side of the border.
“On the Barbados side we are in the process or preparing for a seismic programme later this calender year. We’ve recently been doing the pre-work for that, including the regulatory approvals and the community engagements etc, so at the back end of that seismic programme, of course we have to go through the processing, and hopefully if success will lead to a drilling campaign and hopefully if successful we are looking at something even larger.”
According to its production and sales report, BHP stated that T&T has increased its barrels of crude oil and condensate equivalent by 381 per cent when compared to last September.
The increased volumes came from Ruby offshore Trinidad following first production in May 2021
Ruby is anticipated to produce 16,000 barrels of crude per day and approximately 80 million gross standard cubic feet of natural gas per day.