Shell Todd Oil Services (STOS) general manager Paul Zealand said that the largest land-based rig in New Zealand, OD & E Rig 41, was expected to reach 6500m along-hole when it hit total depth.
The deviated onshore-offshore well, named POW-1, is being drilled from the north Taranaki coast.
OD & E was drilling POW-01 into the southern reservoir section of the Pohokura field that had estimated recoverable reserves of 700 billion cubic feet of gas and 42 million barrels of condensate.
Two further onshore production wells were planned, POW-02 and POW-03, with the next well to spud in September.
Zealand also confirmed that STOS – which operates the Pohokura licence for partners Shell NZ, Todd Energy and OMV – had contracted the Ensco E56 jack-up rig for the program in the more northern part of the field in PMP 38154.
This will start next January with the installation of the platform jacket, topsides and conductors for the single offshore unmanned wellhead platform that will sit in 32m of water. The first of the six offshore wells should spud next February.
A second onshore rig, an AJ Lucas Drilling horizontal directional drilling rig, was mobilised earlier this month to drill two 1800m holes from the onshore gas receiving area under the Tasman Sea to a targeted offshore zone.
The holes, which would carry the production pipeline and umbilical line, would then be extended along the sea bottom to the offshore platform.
