Panoro Energy starts drilling Aje-5 offshore Nigeria

Panoro Energy ASA (Panoro), the London-based E&P company, has announced that drilling has commenced on the Aje-5 production well on the OML 113 license offshore Nigeria

The Aje-5 well is being drilled with the Saipem Scarabeo 3 semi-submersible drilling rig at a depth of 300 metres from a seabed location close to Aje-4. Following drilling, the Aje-5 well will be completed as a subsea oil production well. The drilling and completion for Aje-5 is expected to take approximately 70 days.

Following completion of Aje-5 as a Cenomanian subsea oil production well, the Saipem Scarabeo 3 rig will be used to re-enter the existing Aje-4 well to complete it as a second Cenomanian well.

Installation of the production manifold, flowlines, umbilicals and risers in Aje-5 will take place in Q4 2015 after which the FPSO vessel ‘Front Puffin’ will be installed and commissioned.

Production is expected to commence by the end of 2015 and the initial production flow rate from Aje-4 and Aje-5 wells together is expected to be approximately 1,100 bpd for Panoro, in accordance with the first phase of the field development plan.

Aje is an offshore field located in the western part of Nigeria in the Dahomey Basin close to the border with Benin. The field is situated in water depths ranging from 100 to 1,000 metres about 24 km from the coast, and is said to have oil and gas resources in sandstone reservoirs in three levels.

Panoro holds a 6.502 per cent participating interest in OML 113, with a 12.1913 per cent revenue interest and 16.255 per cent paying interest in the Aje field.