The discovery has been made in the Baltim SW-1 exploration well, which was drilled in the water depth of 25m by Petrobel, a joint venture between IEOC and the state partner Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC).
Upon reaching a total depth of 3750m depth, the well penetrated approximately 62m of net gas pay in high quality Messinian sandstones.
Located 12km from shoreline, the discovery is a new accumulation along the same trend of the Nooros field which was discovered in July 2015.
The Nooros field currently has production capacity of 65,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d). Production is estimated to reach 120.000 boe/d by the end of the year.
The partners are now planning to undertake further appraisal activities, using existing infrastructure, to determine the full resource potential of the new discovery.
BP North Africa regional president Hesham Mekawi said: "We are pleased with the results of the Baltim SW-1 well as it is the third discovery along the Nooros trend and confirms the great potential of the Messinian play and its significant upside in the area.
"This announcement is another example of BP’s commitment to unlock resources in order to bring critical gas production to Egypt."
Eni said that the new discovery confirms the significant potential of the ‘Great Nooros Area’. It is estimated to hold 70-80 billion cubic meters of gas in place.
Eni, through its subsidiary IEOC, operates the Baltim South Development lease with 50% stake while BP owns the remaining the stake.
Image: BP intends to unlock resources to bring gas production to Egypt. Photo: courtesy of think4photop/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net.
