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A lost circulation zone at around 4200m means that there would be serious consequences for containing any possible 'kick' if the well encountered any high pressure pockets, PanContinental Oil and Gas director Andrew Svalbe said yesterday.
"So even though we haven't encountered an oil-water contact point, we've stopped at 4500m. There's a concern that if we encounter some high pressure, we could lose the whole well because we may not be able to control it due to the lost circulation zone," he said.
The Huinga well has encountered strong oil and gas shows and 46 degree API waxy crude has flowed to the surface from the lower zones. Strong gas shows in the drilling mud commenced at 3828m, and further strong gas shows with associated live oil shows were recorded over a 237 metre gross interval while drilling from 4263m down to the current total depth of 4500 metres. The top of the Kapuni Group is interpreted from drilling data at 4378 metres.
Svalbe said the oil has all the aromatics and lighter oils required for a strong commercial product, but the paraffin content mean there was a low pour point, meaning it solidified when it encountered the cool NZ atmosphere.
Results from the drill stem test will be available in two to three days.
