Drilling was halted a week ago at the Dana Petroleum-operated well, after bad weather damaged the blow-out preventer, which then had to be pulled to surface for repair.
The well, currently at a previously reported depth of 1867m, is targeting Cretaceous carbonates and will be drilled to a total planned depth of 3370m.
It is located about 210km offshore and 195km northwest from Pelican-1, a Cretaceous gas discovery drilled in Block 7.
The operator’s assessment of the Flamant prospect suggests it has the potential to contain about 5 trillion cubic feet of gas or 1 billion barrels of oil. The prospect is considered to be more prone to gas than to oil.
On completion of Flamant-1, the Atwood Hunter will drill a second Dana-operated exploration well, Aigrette-1, in Block 7 before the rig is returned to Woodside.
The Block 8 joint JV comprises Dana (24%), Gaz de France UK BV (31%) Wintershall AG (25%), Hardman (18%), and Roc Oil (2%). Gaz de France recently boosted its stake from 13.5% to 31%, acquiring additional equity from Dana. Roc has an option to increase its interest to 5%.
