NZ Oil Exploration: “Greater Maari” Planning Begins
May 11th, 2010
In its quarterly activities report Sydney-based Horizon Oil says it generated revenue of $US12.2m from oil sales of 162,583 barrels from the Maari field off Taranaki. Horizon has a 10% stake in Maari where it says the cumulative oil production through to April 28 has reached 7.6m barrels. Production was affected by a shut-in of the MR5 well with an electrical fault in the downhole pump for the entire quarter, a shut-in of the MR3 well with a similar problem for part of the quarter, and a shut-in of the field between 8 to 28 January for planned facilities inspection and maintenance. The electrical failures in the MR3 and MR5 wells are likely to be the consequence of multiple shutdowns and re-starts during the drilling and well hook-up phase, which is now essentially over.
The MR9 well, which was successfully drilled and completed in the shallower M2A sandstone at the end of the development drilling phase was put on test production in early March and initially flowed at an estimated rate of 4000bopd. The oil was assayed and, as anticipated, confirmed to have similar properties to the crude produced from the main Moki zone, and therefore acceptable to be mixed with the Moki crude for marketing.
Horizon reported a workover unit (WOU) was permanently installed on the platform during the quarter, and commissioning of the rig is nearing completion. “It is anticipated the WOU will be ready to begin operations early in May. The programme will include equipping of the Manaia MN1 well for production, repair of the downhole pumps in the MR3 and MR5 wells, allowing them to be returned to production, and additional perforation in two of the injector wells to increase water injection into the Moki zone.” Horizon says planning has begun to produce a development scheme designed to exploit all the commercially viable oil and gas accumulations within the “greater Maari complex.” The company expects the joint venture will compile estimates in the current quarter of recoverable reserves for each zone, based on subsurface evaluation and reservoir modelling of the Moki and M2A reservoirs at Maari and the Manaia Mangahewa zone, along with production history and subsequent reservoir simulation, plus results from the drilling programme.
As for further exploration, the company says analysis of the reprocessed Maari 3D seismic data as it extends into the neighbouring PEP 51313 where Horizon has a 30% interest has allowed the seismic signal seen at Pike prospect to be correlated and compared with the signature attributed to the oil accumulations at Maari and Manaia fields. New 3D seismic coverage to the south of the Maari 3D seismic will enable this approach to be applied to the Matariki prospect. The new survey for acquisition of 3D data was 32% complete on April 28.
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