This new pre-salt discovery in the Campos Basin, highlights the potential for new discoveries in both the pre and post salt layers of this mature basin, which up to now has been the main O&G producer in Brazil and until recently was considered by many as not having much more to give in terms of new reservoirs.

Petrobras announced the discovery of a new accumulation of light oil (29o API) in the pre-salt layer of the Campos Basin, in water depths of 648 meters at the Marlim field.

Marlim is located in the north-eastern part of Campos Basin, in water depths ranging from 648m to 1,050m. It has some 102 production wells and 50 injection wells. Over 80km of rigid pipelines and 400km of flexible lines have been laid on the field.

The new discovery was the result of the drilling of the exploratory prospect known as Brava, performed by means of well 6-MRL-199D-RJS, located 170 km away from the city of Macaé, state of Rio de Janeiro.

The accumulation discovered in pre-salt carbonatic reservoirs is nestled at a depth of 4,460 meters. Drilling was made to a total depth of about 5,000 meters to reach the reservoir, of which 1,000 meters of salt. Preliminary estimates indicate potential recoverable volumes at about 380 million barrels of oil equivalent there. Tests will be made to assess the productivity of these reservoirs.

The discovery is located in the area near the installed infrastructure in the Marlim and Voador fields, and the discovery well is located 4.5 km from the platform P-27, a fact that should not only facilitate field development, but also can reduce CAPEX.

The Marlim field will soon host the world's first system for deepwater subsea separation of heavy oil and water, including reinjection of water to boost production in this mature field development.

FMC is the contractor at the Marlim field. The subsea separation system is being jointly engineered between FMC’s operations in Brazil, Norway and the Netherlands.  Final manufacturing and integration activities will be performed at the company’s Rio de Janeiro facility, with deliveries projected to begin in 2011.

The investments that have been made in subsea equipment installation at the Marlim field are massive and over 600 meters deep is considered deepwater. It´s good news indeed that the pre-salt layer there is showing good results as this increases the probability of new pre-salt   reservoir discoveries in the area and also shows us the magnitude and importance of the pre-salt to the future of the Brazilian O&G market. Things are definitely looking good.

 

Claudio Paschoa

The two new discoveries in one well, announced by Petrobras last Thursday, strengthen the thesis pertaining to the possibility of the existence of a great reservoir beneath the salt layer of the Campos Basin.

With 8 exploratory wells producing hydrocarbon discoveries during the year and with estimates of recoverable oil of around 5 billion barrels, OGX ends 2009 on a very positive high.

OGX Petróleo e Gás Participações S.A., announced two days ago that it had completed the drilling of well 1-OGX-2A-RJS, located in the BM-C-41 block, in the shallow waters of the southern part of the Campos Basin. OGX holds a 100% working interest in this block.

The well was drilled to a depth of approximately 3,550 meters, resulting in the finding of hydrocarbons in five different reservoirs: Eocene, Upper Cretaceous, Albian, Aptian and Barremian. Once the drilling of the well was concluded, wireline pretests and sampling, final logging and sidewall coring were carried out in order to refine the existing information and obtain additional data.

Based on the well information associated with the 3D seismic data interpretation, OGX estimates a recoverable oil volume for all reservoirs of between 1 and 2 billion barrels. The tests confirmed the presence of high quality carbonate reservoirs. Preliminary analysis indicates lighter oil in the deeper reservoirs. 

“The drilling of the well OGX-2A confirms the vast oil potential of the southern part of the Campos Basin, which we believe will become a major oil producing region in Brazil,” commented Paulo Mendonça, General Executive Officer of OGX. “This result is extremely important because the drilling revealed oil volumes which constitute a substantial portion of prospective resources estimated by DeGolyer & MacNaughton,” added Mr. Mendonça.

Ocean Ambassador, the rig used in the drilling activities at this well, will be mobilized to the next location in the BM-C-43 block.  The drilling of the next well, also located in the shallow waters of the southern part of the Campos Basin, is expected to commence in the final days of December 2009.

Another important development was announced by OGX last week. The Brazilan player released that it had identified an oil-bearing interval in the Albian section in the well 1-OGX-3-RJS, also located in the BM-C-41 block, in the shallow waters of the southern part of the Campos Basin. OGX also holds a 100% working interest in this block.

An oil column of over 130 meters with around 80 meters of net pay has been encountered in carbonate reservoirs with certain intervals presenting porosities in excess of 30%. The well OGX-3 remains in the hydrocarbons zone and drilling will continue aiming at additional objectives.

"This discovery in OGX-3 is very significant as it reinforces our belief that we are facing a new oil province in the southern part of the Campos Basin,” commented Paulo Mendonça, OGX's General Executive Officer. “We are particularly surprised by the excellent levels of permo-porosity found in the carbonate reservoirs in the Albian section,” added Mendonça.

The well is situated approximately 83 kilometers off the coast of the state of Rio de Janeiro at a water depth of approximately 130 meters.  The rig Sea Explorer, provided by Pride International, initiated drilling activities at 1-OGX-3-RJS on November 16th, 2009.

OGX will end the year with about 8 major hydrocarbon discoveries in its exploration wells in the shallow water southern part of the Campos Basin.

These recent discoveries will directly reflect on subsea equipment suppliers. OGX had already placed an order for G&E Subsea VetcoGray wellheads and other support equipment.

The frame agreement with OGX, one of the largest agreements VetcoGray has ever secured in Brazil, will cover the supply of MS-700 and MS-800 subsea wellhead systems, including large bore casing strings, associated rental tools and onshore and offshore assistance during the entire drilling campaign.

Since this agreement was signed, OGX has substancially increased the scope of its exploratory drilling campaign and is consistently reaching positive results.

It can be forseen that there will be an increase in subsea equipment requirements in order to meet this increased exploratory scope.

Early 2009 forecasts were tipping the southern Campos Basin to have a potencial reservoirs of 4,835 billion barrels/boe. OGX will finish 2009 having proven a potencial of around 5 billion barrels/boe and that is just in the shallow water Campos Basin blocks.

Congratulations to OGX Petróleo e Gás Participações S.A. on such an extraordinary year and may the future be just as brilliant.

OGX is part of the EBX Group, the company was launched in 2007 and put together a highly experienced O&G team and through strategic investments is already reaping the rewards. Some of these wells are planned to start production as soon as 2011.

 

Claudio Paschoa

Photo C. Paschoa