CGX drilling rig coming by month-end PDF Print E-mail
Written by Clifford Stanley
Wednesday, 04 January 2012 02:06
… off-shore drilling to begin soon after
CANADIAN Oil and Gas Exploration Company, CGX Energy Inc. yesterday announced that a semi-submersible drilling rig departed the Gulf of Mexico on New Year’s Day for Guyana, and is expected to be here by month- end to commence drilling for oil in its Eagle-1 off-shore well.
The drilling contract has been awarded to a subsidiary of the company, Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc, for the ‘Ocean Saratoga semi-submersible drilling rig’ to drill the Eagle-1 well on the company’s fully owned and operated Corentyne prospecting licence offshore Guyana.
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. is a leading drilling contractor that owns and operates one of the largest fleets of offshore drilling units in the world, and has bases in Texas in the United States; Perth, Australia; Macae, Brazil; and Aberdeen,Scotland.
[The Ocean Saratoga semi-submersible drilling rig that departed the Gulf of Mexico on New Year’s Day for Guyana, and is expected to be here by month-end to commence drilling for oil.] The company has over 40 years global drilling experience, and approximately 5,000 skilled employees worldwide.
The Ocean Saratoga had up to late last year been wrapping up a workover for Walter Oil & Gas in the Gulf of Mexico.
Stephen Hermeston, President and CEO, stated, "We are pleased that the rig is now under tow and looking forward to the commencement of drilling."
CGX said it will make a further announcement when the Eagle-1 well has commenced drilling.
The Eagle-1 drill site lies in about 250 feet of water.
Guyana had required CGX to drill the well by the end of 2011, but the rig the company had contracted was not available at the expected time.
The government had granted the deferral to signal that there were “no issues regarding the sanctity of contract”.
The company had earlier disclosed that the drilling of the Eagle -1 well will appraise the Eocene and Maastrichtian geologic formations to an anticipated total depth of 4,300 metres, and will take approximately 60 days.
It is expected that the issue of Guyana’s prospects for becoming an oil economy should be resolved at the end of this drilling.
CGX has always expressed confidence in the fact that the Guyana-Suriname basin is an area that is ranked second in the world for oil and gas prospectivity by the United States Geological Service.
CGX holds three licences offshore Guyana, stretching 400 km from the Venezuelan border in the north to the Surinamese border in the south.
Using 2-D seismic, CGX has identified with five giant targets offshore and undertook a 2,375 sq km 3-D seismic programme on its offshore Corentyne and Georgetown licences.
An independent report from Gustavson Associates showed CGX held a resource estimate of 2.8 billion barrels on three prospects on the Corentyne concession.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) had, in 2000, concluded that the Guyana-Suriname sedimentary basin contains 15 billion barrels of undiscovered oil.
Local sources have, however, cautioned that regardless what the USGS says, no one will know for sure whether there is oil until drilling starts.
The company also intends to drill the Jaguar-1 well, in which it has a 25% interest with partners Repsol Exploracion S.A (operator) , YPF Guyana Limited and Tullow Guyana B.V.
The Jaguar-1 well, located on the Georgetown petroleum prospecting licence, will appraise the Turonian geologic formation and will be drilled to an anticipated depth of 6,500 metres by the Atwood Beacon jackup rig as soon as it completes drilling for Inpex Corporation offshore Suriname.
The founders of CGX began negotiations in 1996 with the Government of Guyana to acquire an offshore concession to explore for oil.
CGX Resources Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of CGX, was granted the 10-year Corentyne Licence by the Government of Guyana in June 1998.
In pursuit of exploration, CGX had attempted to drill at the Eagle location in 2000, but was forced off by Surinamese gunboats.
Suriname insisted that the place that CGX had intended to drill was its territory and maintained this position despite a number of meetings held around CARICOM.
In September 2007, following representation from the Government of Guyana, the United Nations Law of the Sea ruled that the point at which CGX was exploring was well within the maritime boundaries of Guyana, thereby paving the way for the return of CGX after an absence of five years.
Excerpts from the Guyana Chronicle
Written by Clifford Stanley
Wednesday, 04 January 2012 02:06
… off-shore drilling to begin soon after
CANADIAN Oil and Gas Exploration Company, CGX Energy Inc. yesterday announced that a semi-submersible drilling rig departed the Gulf of Mexico on New Year’s Day for Guyana, and is expected to be here by month- end to commence drilling for oil in its Eagle-1 off-shore well.
The drilling contract has been awarded to a subsidiary of the company, Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc, for the ‘Ocean Saratoga semi-submersible drilling rig’ to drill the Eagle-1 well on the company’s fully owned and operated Corentyne prospecting licence offshore Guyana.
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. is a leading drilling contractor that owns and operates one of the largest fleets of offshore drilling units in the world, and has bases in Texas in the United States; Perth, Australia; Macae, Brazil; and Aberdeen,Scotland.
[The Ocean Saratoga semi-submersible drilling rig that departed the Gulf of Mexico on New Year’s Day for Guyana, and is expected to be here by month-end to commence drilling for oil.] The company has over 40 years global drilling experience, and approximately 5,000 skilled employees worldwide.
The Ocean Saratoga had up to late last year been wrapping up a workover for Walter Oil & Gas in the Gulf of Mexico.
Stephen Hermeston, President and CEO, stated, "We are pleased that the rig is now under tow and looking forward to the commencement of drilling."
CGX said it will make a further announcement when the Eagle-1 well has commenced drilling.
The Eagle-1 drill site lies in about 250 feet of water.
Guyana had required CGX to drill the well by the end of 2011, but the rig the company had contracted was not available at the expected time.
The government had granted the deferral to signal that there were “no issues regarding the sanctity of contract”.
The company had earlier disclosed that the drilling of the Eagle -1 well will appraise the Eocene and Maastrichtian geologic formations to an anticipated total depth of 4,300 metres, and will take approximately 60 days.
It is expected that the issue of Guyana’s prospects for becoming an oil economy should be resolved at the end of this drilling.
CGX has always expressed confidence in the fact that the Guyana-Suriname basin is an area that is ranked second in the world for oil and gas prospectivity by the United States Geological Service.
CGX holds three licences offshore Guyana, stretching 400 km from the Venezuelan border in the north to the Surinamese border in the south.
Using 2-D seismic, CGX has identified with five giant targets offshore and undertook a 2,375 sq km 3-D seismic programme on its offshore Corentyne and Georgetown licences.
An independent report from Gustavson Associates showed CGX held a resource estimate of 2.8 billion barrels on three prospects on the Corentyne concession.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) had, in 2000, concluded that the Guyana-Suriname sedimentary basin contains 15 billion barrels of undiscovered oil.
Local sources have, however, cautioned that regardless what the USGS says, no one will know for sure whether there is oil until drilling starts.
The company also intends to drill the Jaguar-1 well, in which it has a 25% interest with partners Repsol Exploracion S.A (operator) , YPF Guyana Limited and Tullow Guyana B.V.
The Jaguar-1 well, located on the Georgetown petroleum prospecting licence, will appraise the Turonian geologic formation and will be drilled to an anticipated depth of 6,500 metres by the Atwood Beacon jackup rig as soon as it completes drilling for Inpex Corporation offshore Suriname.
The founders of CGX began negotiations in 1996 with the Government of Guyana to acquire an offshore concession to explore for oil.
CGX Resources Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of CGX, was granted the 10-year Corentyne Licence by the Government of Guyana in June 1998.
In pursuit of exploration, CGX had attempted to drill at the Eagle location in 2000, but was forced off by Surinamese gunboats.
Suriname insisted that the place that CGX had intended to drill was its territory and maintained this position despite a number of meetings held around CARICOM.
In September 2007, following representation from the Government of Guyana, the United Nations Law of the Sea ruled that the point at which CGX was exploring was well within the maritime boundaries of Guyana, thereby paving the way for the return of CGX after an absence of five years.
Excerpts from the Guyana Chronicle
