Rhino Resources has confirmed a light oil discovery at its Capricornus 1-X exploration well, drilled in the Orange Basin off the coast of Namibia.
The announcement was made on Thursday, with the company stating that results from extensive wireline and drill stem testing programmes had verified the presence of a high-quality, light-oil bearing reservoir with no observed water contact.
“Rhino, on behalf of the PEL85 JV, are delighted to announce the discovery of hydrocarbons at the Capricornus 1-X well.The results of the comprehensive wireline and drill stem testing programmes have proven the existence of a high-quality light-oil bearing reservoir, with no observed-water: contact,” said Travis Smithard, Chief Executive Officer of Rhino Resources.
“This achievement is testament to the outstanding execution of the campaign by the Rhino team and our service company partners, who have ensured the safe and successful drilling of two consecutive deepwater wells in a challenging geological environment.”
According to Rhino, the Capricornus 1-X well was spudded on 17 February using the Noble Venturer drillship and reached a total depth of 4,957 metres true vertical depth subsea (TVDSS) on 2 April, successfully penetrating the Lower Cretaceous target.
The well encountered 38 metres of net pay, with the reservoir exhibiting good petrophysical properties and no water contact. Hydrocarbon samples and sidewall cores were retrieved during intensive wireline logging operations.
Capricornus 1-X is located within Petroleum Exploration Licence 85 (PEL85), operated by Rhino Resources, which holds a 42.5% working interest.
Co-venturers include Azule Energy (42.5%), a joint venture between bp and Eni, along with Namibia’s national oil company NAMCOR (10%) and Korres Investments (5%).
The company said it will now shift its focus to post-drilling analysis to determine the next phase of its exploration strategy across the block.
