Also later this month, Oilex will start a continuous nine-month drilling campaign in India. Then in November, it will begin a three-well campaign in Oman.

Indonesia

Drilling at Pendalian-3 well in the West Kampar PSC in Sumatra, Indonesia has been delayed by heavy rains that hampered mobilisation of the rig, Oilex said.

But the materials and most of the equipment are now on site and rigging up has started in preparation for spudding.

“The Pendalian-3 well will appraise the oil field discovered in 1993 by the Pendalian-1 well, a cored slim hole which encountered a number of oil zones at depths ranging from 250 to 500 metres,” Oilex said.

“Two shallow zones in the Sihapas Sandstone flowed oil from cased hole tests in Pendalian-1, one at 530 barrels per day.”

Pendalian has four oil zones with the shallowest at about 450m and basement at 800m. Despite these depths, the reservoirs have a strong water drive.

Oilex has previously said if Pendalian-3 comes good, a swift development is likely.

“If commercial productivity is confirmed by the extensive cased hole testing program planned for the conventionally drilled Pendalian-3 well, the joint venture plans to acquire a 3D seismic survey over the Pendalian Field and a number of satellite structures and to accelerate development,” the company said when it farmed into the block in May.

“Shallow, low-cost wells and the proximity to infrastructure are attractive incentives for rapid development of the field. Early cash flow generated by Pendalian production will be applied to the exploration of highly prospective trends that have been recognised on the block.”

The West Kampar PSC partners are Oilex 45% and operator Sumatera Persada Energi 55%.

India

Meanwhile in India, the Oilex and its partner Gujarat State Petroleum will drill a series of wells at their Cambay and Bhandut joint ventures with Oilex acting as operator.

Oilex’s Indian fields are old; they have produced relatively small volumes of hydrocarbons and continue to produce oil intermittently despite problems with sand and water incursion. These projects have low geological risk; the question is whether engineering will be able to recover the oil.

The first, Bhandut-2Z, will be a re-entry and sidetrack of an existing production well that has produced oil at rates of up to 200 barrels per day in the past, according to Oilex.

“Currently it is producing at rates of about 15 barrels of oil per day with a significant volume of water,” the company said.

“The well will be sidetracked to a structurally higher location and a 100- metre horizontal wellbore will be drilled into the main reservoir unit. On the basis that the water production can be terminated, the well will be completed as a producer.”

The first wells in Cambay, to follow the Bhandut-2Z well, are located to acquire modern fluid, pressure, core and wireline data in areas where data quality is poor, particularly in the main basin where gas has been tested and produced from old wells.

“The two wells that were drilled late last year on the Western High Area were located without the benefit of 3D seismic and they tested oil from two zones,” Oilex said.

At present there is no modern data from the gas-bearing horizons and in order to assess the development potential of the gas resource, the main objective of first wells at Cambay will be to acquire the data needed for confirming reserves and to test the seismic anomalies interpreted as indicating gas.

Oilex has a 40% stake in Bhandut and 45% in Cambay. Gujarat State Petroleum holds the remaining equity.

Oman

In Oman, an Oilex is acting operator in a joint venture with four Indian companies. The partners have contracted for three firm wells and the option to drill up to eight additional wells.

Two of the first three wells are in the western part of the Block 56 permit on structures that appear similar to those in producing fields immediately to the west in the South Oman Salt Basin. The third well will be drilled in a remote area along a prominent geological trend that has not been drilled previously.

“These locations were selected using the existing and reprocessed 2D and 3D seismic data and are not contingent on the interpretation of the 1000 kilometre seismic acquisition program underway in the block,” Oilex said.

The 2D seismic acquisition survey has started in the southwest part of the block and is about 17% complete, Oilex said, and the acquisition is expected to be finalised by the end of October.

Participants in the Block 56 PSA are Oilex 25%, Videocon 25%, GAIL 25%, Bharat Petroleum 12.5% and Hindustan Petroleum 12.5%.