ReconAfrica has resumed operations at its Kavango West 1X (KW1X) well in northeastern Namibia and plans to begin horizontal drilling in October, subject to regulatory approvals, as it moves towards a flow test of the Kavango discovery.
The Canadian oil and gas company said samples from the KW1X vertical well indicated thermogenic gas with liquids potential, with maturity ranging from late oil to early gas.
The samples were obtained from the Huttenberg and Elandshoek formations, with the planned horizontal flow test expected to assess well deliverability, liquid yields from the gas stream and formation pressure response.
“The upcoming horizontal test is intended to establish sustained flow rates from which additional samples will be obtained to determine liquid composition and to measure liquid yields from the gas stream,” the company said.
ReconAfrica President and CEO Brian Reinsborough said establishing flow rates and liquids content would be critical to assessing the commercial potential of the discovery and moving it towards a Final Investment Decision (FID).
“We are excited to be moving forward with the open hole horizontal flow test at KW1X following successfully identifying the zone of interest in the upper Huttenberg formation. Measuring a flow rate and determining liquids content at KW1X are essential for moving towards a Final Investment Decision at the Kavango discovery,” Reinsborough said.
He said the results would also provide information relevant to other structures identified across the company’s exploration licence.
The Jarvie-1 rig has returned to operations, with work on the existing vertical wellbore under way. ReconAfrica said casing is being removed before a whipstock is set at a depth of about 2,500 metres to enable horizontal drilling.
Subject to regulatory approvals and the arrival of equipment, drilling of the horizontal section is expected to begin in October and take about one month.
The horizontal wellbore could extend up to 1,000 metres and is designed to intersect natural fractures across the Kavango structure.
ReconAfrica said the well will be completed as an open-hole well without casing or cement to maximise flow from natural fractures and identified porosity zones. Flow testing is expected to begin immediately after drilling is completed.
The company said equipment required for the programme has been procured and is either on site or in transit, while rig maintenance has been completed and permit applications filed with the relevant regulatory authorities.
ReconAfrica has mapped 22 structures across its Namibian exploration licence and expects results from KW1X to provide further geological information on the wider Kavango play.
Meanwhile, the company is advancing exploration activities in Angola, where preliminary results from soil sampling conducted in May and June indicated what ReconAfrica described as a working thermogenic petroleum system with liquids potential.
“Preliminary results from the soil sampling programme conducted on the MOU acreage in Angola during May and June suggest there is a working petroleum system that is thermogenic with liquid content potential, similar to the Namibian side of the play,” the company said.
ReconAfrica said microseeps identified at the surface suggest vertical migration from deeper hydrocarbon accumulations. The company is considering a 2D seismic programme in Angola in 2027 to further define the structural trend of the Damara Fold Belt.
