In Santos' half-yearly results last week, Ellice-Flint said production from the Santos-operated infill project was expected to treble to 30,000 barrels of oil per day by 2010.
Junior joint venture partner in the Tintaburra arm, Drillsearch, also sang the project’s praises in its half-year financial report, crediting it for providing a major increase in its petroleum reserves.
Drillsearch said last year’s 76-well drilling program, which “recorded high rates” of drilling success, has increased 2P (proved and probable) reserves to about 1.98 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMboe).
Meanwhile, the 2007 Tintaburra campaign, comprising 62 new wells, is expected to boost reserves further to 2.24MMboe, it said.
Drillsearch, which holds a 10% stake, said the drilling and development program returned “notable results” in the last six months of 2006.
“Wells at the Endeavour field continued to encounter large net oil pay columns in the Birkhead Formation. Drilling continued to extend the field to the west and southwest … providing additional development drilling opportunities,” the company said.
“Successful wells [at Mulberry] have extended the field in the south and an 11-well drilling program for 2007 aims to extend the field to the west and southwest.”
The Santos-Drillsearch JV also undertook an eight-well exploration program in the southern part of the block, in which seven wells made sub-economic oil discoveries.
Oil shows at Nockatunga well, Telowie-1: Magellan
Meanwhile, Santos’ partner in the Nockatunga arm, Magellan Petroleum, says oil shows have been encountered in the Birkhead Formation and Murta Member at the Muthero-5 appraisal well in PL 51.
Santos holds a 61% stake and is operator of the Nockatunga program, while Magellan has 39%.
In addition, Magellan said “minor oil shows” were encountered in its Telowie-1 exploration well in Cooper Basin permit PEL 94, in which Beach Petroleum is operator with 50% and Victoria Petroleum (15%) is also a partner.
Telowie-1, designed to test a simple anticlinal structure located on the northeastern end of the Milpera Horst, was drilled on the southern flank of the Cooper Basin.
