Perth, Australia, based explorer Tap Oil has been awarded 100% of Blocks W14-7 and W14-16 in the Barrow and Dampier sub-basins on Australia's North West Shelf.
The blocks were awarded as part of Australia's Work Program Round 1, which included 14 of 30 blocks being offered under the 2014 Offshore Petroleum Exploration Acreage Release.
Bids close for Work Program Round 2, which includes 12 areas, on 2 April. The remaining four areas were part of a Cash Bid Round, bids for which closed 5 February.
W14-07, now Petroleum Exploration Permit WA-515-P, is on the Rankin Platform in water depths ranging from less than 100-400m and covers about 485sq km (6 graticular blocks).
The permit lies between the Wheatstone gas field to the west and the Goodwyn/Perseus gas fields to the east.
W14-16, now Petroleum Exploration Permit WA-516-P, is to the east of the Alpha Arch on the western flank of the Barrow sub-basin and is adjacent to other Tap held acreage.
The permit is in 50-200m water depth and covers about 160sq km (2 graticular blocks) (Figure 2). The permit lies between the Griffin, Chinook/Scindian fields and the Woollybutt Oil Field.
According to the Australian government, the Barrow Sub-basin contains a Mesozoic to Cenozoic sedimentary succession, with maximum thicknesses of 10–20 km. The region offers proven petroleum systems of Late Triassic, Middle–Late Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous age.
Oil and gas accumulations exist within this sub-basin, offering a range of play types to be targeted. Gas is sourced from Triassic to Middle Jurassic fluvio-deltaic rocks of the Mungaroo and Brigadier formations, Murat Siltstone, and Athol and Legendre formations. Oil is sourced from the Upper Jurassic Dingo Claystone. Structural plays include tilted fault blocks and rollovers, anticlines and drapes, and horsts. Stratigraphic plays include pinch-outs, unconformity traps and transgressive sandstone packages at the base of the Locker Shale. The region contains existing infrastructure that will facilitate further development.
Tap Oil has agreed to a three-year work program comprising of reprocessing open file 3D seismic or licensing existing multi-client reprocessed 3D data, Quantitative Interpretation studies and G&G studies. Each three year work program runs from 6 March 2015 through to 5 March 2018. The majority of these funds are anticipated being spent from 2016 onwards.
The optional secondary work program comprises 3D seismic acquisition in Year 4 and a well in Year 6.
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