Oil & Gas Journal
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Horn Petroleum Corp., Vancouver, BC, said its
still-drilling Shabeel wildcat in Puntland, Somalia, has confirmed the
presence of an active petroleum system in the Dharoor Valley.
Horn, operator, said the Shabeel well is at 2,703 m where 9-5/8-in.
casing is set. It has been drilled through primarily tight limestones
and shales of Lower Tertiary to Upper Cretaceous age and encountered a
355-m section of Upper Cretaceous sands and shales of the Tisje/Jesomma
formations at 1,660 m.
The sands in the interval exhibited oil and gas shows, and
petrophysical analysis of downhole electrical logs indicates a potential
pay zone 12-20 m thick in the section, the company said. Attempts to
sample formation fluids using a wireline formation tester were not
successful, and thus the zone will require cased-hole testing to confirm
whether it is oil bearing.
At a depth of 2,015 m a thick section of tight limestones and shales
was encountered extending to the present depth of 2,703 m that is
believed to correspond to the Upper Cretaceous Gumburo formation.
Horn and partners plan to drill ahead to the originally planned 3,800
m to evaluate the primary and secondary reservoir targets in the Lower
Cretaceous and Jurassic intervals equivalent to the main productive
section seen in analogous fields in Yemen’s Masila and Shabwa basins.
A testing program including the zones of interest seen to date and
any deeper potential pay zones identified will be agreed with partners
at that time. Upon completion of this well, Horn will move the rig to
the Shabeel North location which is nearly built.
Horn is operator with 60% interest in the Dharoor and Nugaal blocks
in a Jurassic rift basin in Puntland, Somalia. Perth independents Range
Resources Ltd. and Red Emperor Resources NL each have 20%.