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Hydrocarbon exploration: Covid-19 forces interruption of drilling in Búzi
3:08 CAT | 16 Jul 2020
Photo: Notícias
The drilling of the second hydrocarbon research well in the Búzi block in Mozambique’s sedimentary basin is currently suspended due to the incidence of Covid 19 in the country and generally.
Work on BS-2 (Búzi Supercial-2) well, located 1,000 metres from the first well designated BS-1, started in May and reached a depth of 836 metres out of a total of 1,548 envisaged.
A source from the National Petroleum Institute (INP) explained to Noticias that the drilling of the second well was interrupted due to the obligation to comply with the procedures established by the government regarding the entry and exit of goods and people under Covid-19 pandemic state of emergency regulations.
“This drilling activity is complex, and is carried out by a considerable number of workers, excluding expatriates, who will not be able to rotate due to the aforementioned preventative actions. At the moment, activities are limited to platform maintenance,” the INP source explained.
The first well, also sunk this year and reaching a total depth of 1,567 metres on March 10, 2020, indicated the occurrence of natural gas. The results of production tests confirming the discovery are currently awaited.
Each well is budgeted at US$15.2 million.
The completion of the now-interrupted second well aims to assess the lateral continuity of gas-bearing geological formations.
The two wells are part of the programme agreed in the research contract signed by the Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy and the Búzi Hydrocarbons PTE Limitada (BHPL) in 2010.
The concession contract signed with BHPL is divided into three research periods covering a total of eight years but extended for a further 12 months to allow the conclusion of the activities provided for in the second and third research periods.
The first prospecting which confirmed the existence of natural gas in the region was the Búzi-1 well sunk by Gulf and Amoco in 1968-1972.
Source: Notícias
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