"Further drilling difficulties have been experienced within the shallow section above the reservoir target and the well is now being plugged and abandoned with the intention to drill the well at a later date within the current drill program," Tap said.
"The reasons for the drilling difficulties are being fully evaluated and a revised drill program will be determined to enable the Jane-1 well to be drilled at a future time within the current program. These drilling difficulties do not affect the potential of the Jane prospect."
The drilling rig will next be moved to drill the Rose-4 development well, also within the HJV.
Meanwhile the Harriet Joint Venture partners are also plugging and abandoning their Romulus well in the offshore Carnarvon Basin, Western Australia, but will be hoping for better luck with the next well, the second twin of Ancient Roman legend, Remus.
Tap Oil said yesterday that Romulus-1 - in the Harriet Joint Venture Permit TL/6 – had intersected the targeted Flag sandstones without encountering commercial hydrocarbons. The well was therefore being plugged and abandoned.
Romulus-1 was the second well in an intensive drilling campaign of approximately 18 wells for Flag prospects within the HJV. The first well, Albert-1, encountered a 13m gross oil column and has been put into production. The next programmed well would be Remus-1, said Tap.
TL/6 Joint Venture participants are Apache Northwest Pty (operator) 68.5%, Kufpec Australia Pty 19.2771%, and Tap Oil 12.2229%.
Meanwhile, Tap said the Lauda-2 well, in WA-290-P west of Barrow Island and northwest of the Woollybutt oil field, had penetrated the primary objective of upper Barrow Group sandstones.
No potentially commercial hydrocarbon zones were intersected at this level and the well deepened to explore several other potential hydrocarbon zones deeper within the Barrow Group. But the well had encountered drilling difficulties and work was in progress to rectify these problems.
Once Lauda-2, which was designed to explore a separate small structure to the east and downthrown to the Lauda prospect, was finished the joint venture would consider a further appraisal well.
WA-290-P Joint Venture participants are OMV Barrow (operator) 50%, Tap (Shelfal) 25%, and Nippon Oil Exploration (Australia) 25%.
