Colombia E&P sees good start to 2017

BOGOTA, January 2, 2017 – Colombia’s Ecopetrol announced late December that its 100% owned subsidiary Hocol had encountered gas near-shore in Atlanticó department. The Bullerengue Sur-1 well, drilled from land some 30 kilometres from Barranquilla, found an approximately 25-metre gas column as well as some oil.

The discovery confirms earlier gas deposits found by the Bullerengue 1 well in 2015. The new well, drilled between November 18 and December 7 on budget, is 50% owned by US company Lewis Energy. Both companies will analyse the results.

In another positive development for Colombia’s upstream sector, Maersk Oil has brought its semi-submersible Maersk Developer rig out of retirement for a one-well contract with Repsol Colombia in block RC-11 offshore the western Caribbean.

The contract for the Siluro-1 Exploration Prospect well is worth an estimated USD 12 million. The operation is set to last 42 days, beginning in Q2 2017. According to Repsol, Siluro is a 90-metre shallow-water prospect with potential gas reserves of 45.3 bcm (1.6 tcf). Repsol owns 50% and is the operator, with Ecopetrol taking the remainder.

The Maersk Developer was built in 2009, and warm-stacked in early 2016 as part of the company’s efforts to reduce operating costs during the downturn. The rig is currently idling in the Gulf of Mexico, off the US coast. The contract’s value includes its mobilisation and demobilisation costs.

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