PARAMARIBO, Suriname – On the heels of major oil discoveries in Guyana, another big find has been made by French and US companies drilling offshore Suriname.
The US-based Apache Corporation and French multinational Total S.A, which are 50/50 partners in the Block 58 acreage off the coast of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) nation, say they’ve made a significant oil discovery at the Maka Central-1 well in the block.
They said the well, drilled by the drillship Noble Sam Croft, encountered more than 123 metres net pay of high-quality light oil and gas rich condensate net pay. Further drilling and testing are to be carried out to appraise the resources and productivity of the reservoir.
“We are very pleased with this first significant oil discovery, made just after our entry into Block 58. The result is very encouraging and proves the extension of the prolific world-class Guyana Cretaceous oil play into Suriname waters,” said Kevin McLachlan, Senior Vice President Exploration at Total which is also exploring in neighbouring Guyana.
“We are optimistic about the large remaining potential of the area still to be discovered and will test several other prospects on the same block.”
John J. Christmann, CEO and President of oil and gas exploration and production company Apache, was also pleased with the results from Maka Central-1.
“The well proves a working hydrocarbon system in the first two play types within Block 58 and confirms our geologic model with oil and condensate in shallower zones and oil in deeper zones,” he said.
“Preliminary formation evaluation data indicates the potential for prolific oil wells. Additionally, the size of the stratigraphic feature, as defined by 3-D seismic imaging, suggests a substantial resource.”
Christmann added that Block 58, which comprises 1.4 million acres, offers significant potential beyond the discovery at Maka Central.
“We have identified at least seven distinct play types and more than 50 prospects within the thermally mature play fairway. In partnership with Total, we look forward to advancing both exploration and development of discoveries on the block,” he said.
The Noble Sam Croft will drill the next well, Sapakara West-1, approximately 20 kilometres southeast of Maka Central-1.
