Portuguese oil and gas company Galp has reported preliminary signs of hydrocarbon presence in an exploration well being drilled offshore Namibia.
Galp (operator, 80%) and its partners NAMCOR and Custos (10% each) initiated the drilling campaign in PEL 83, offshore Namibia, on November 17, 2023.
The first well, Mopane-1X, indicates preliminary signs of hydrocarbon presence, Gulp informed in an operations update.
“Drilling and data acquisition campaigns are underway, making any conclusion premature before operations are completed and results assessed,” Galp said.
In May 2023, Galp entered into a contract with SFL Corporation for the semi-submersible rig Hercules, currently employed at Mopane-1X.
The 115-day contract, prior to any extension option exercise, is for two wells plus optional well testing.
Galp said it would use Hercules rig to drill on blocks 2813A and 2814B governed by Petroleum Exploration License 83 (PEL 83).
The initial drilling campaign is targeting ‘the massive’ Mopane complex located at the southern end of PEL 83 with estimate mean oil-in-place of up to 10 billion barrels, Sintana Energy, which holds 49% in Custos, said earlier.
PEL 83 is located near the giant oil discoveries made by TotalEnergies and Shell, including TotalEnergies’ Venus-1, and Shell-operated PEL 39 discoveries at Graff-1, La Rona-1 and Jonker-1.
