OMV has drilled a duster northwest of the Wisting Central oil discovery in the Barents Sea, having only recently also suffered disappointment as a partner in the Eni-operated Bonna prospect further south in the Barents (see last issue of DI, page 5).
The Austrian operator of production licence 537 drilled wildcat well 7324/7-1 S about 5 km northwest of the 7324/8-1 discovery well, and about 170 km northeast of the gas/oil discovery 7220/8-1 Johan Castberg. The primary exploration target was to prove petroleum in Middle Triassic reservoir rocks (the Kobbe formation). The secondary exploration target was to prove petroleum in reservoir rocks from the Middle to Late Triassic (the Snadd formation).
Reservoir rocks were encountered in the Kobbe and Snadd formations, but with poorer than expected reservoir properties. This is the second exploration well in PL 537, with the probe drilled to a vertical depth of 2,454 m (8,052 ft). Water depth was 413 m (1,355 ft). The well has been permanently plugged and abandoned.
The Leiv Eiriksson rig will now proceed to PL 040 in the North Sea to drill well 30/40-D for Total E&P Norge.
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