Rhino Resources Ltd, on behalf of the PEL 85 Joint Venture (JV), says it has encountered a hydrocarbon-bearing reservoir, confirming the presence of charge in the basin after successfully completing the drilling of its first exploration well, Sagittarius-1X, on Block 2914 in Namibia’s offshore Orange Basin.
“We are pleased to have safely and successfully completed the drilling of the first exploration well in our programme on PEL 85. The hydrocarbon-bearing reservoir encountered is evidence of the effectiveness of charge, although further assessment will be required by Rhino and the PEL 85 JV partners to evaluate the results of the well,” said Rhino CEO Travis Smithard.
Rhino stated that further evaluation will be needed to determine the full implications of these findings.
Meanwhile, Rhino Resources and its JV partners are shifting their focus to the next target, the Capricornus prospect—a NE-SW trending channel system.
“Our attention now turns to the second target in the programme, the Capricornus prospect, a NE-SW trending channel system. The Capricornus-1X well is due to be spud within the next 24 hours and is estimated to take 47 days to drill,” Smithard added.
Drilling operations on PEL 85 commenced in December with the spudding of the Sagittarius-1X well, utilizing the state-of-the-art drillship Noble Venturer.
Located in a water depth of approximately 1,400 meters, the well is positioned near significant recent discoveries, including Galp Energia’s Mopane find in PEL 83 and multiple successful wells drilled by Shell in PEL 39, such as the Graff discovery.
Despite its proximity to these major discoveries, Rhino Resources emphasized that the Sagittarius-1X well targets multiple stacked reservoirs in a distinct geological setting, positioned in an up-dip location within the basin to test different elements of the Orange Basin’s play fairway.
