Canadian-listed TAG said this morning that Radnor-1A had reached a total depth of 4395m over the weekend. After evaluating wireline logs, TAG decided to set production casing and then start a program of completion testing.
Company president Drew Cadenhead said initial interpretation of the logs indicated about 16m of gross gas-condensate pay had been encountered in the Eocene-aged McKee sands.
The top of the zone was 31m updip from the interpreted gas-water contact at the offsetting Stratford-1 well, which in the early 1990s flowed about 1 million cubic feet per day (MMcfd) of gas and 140 barrels per day (bpd) of condensate before watering out.
Radnor-1A is a sidetrack operation, re-entering the original Radnor-1 well and directionally drilling to a total measured depth of 4395m, about 487m southwest of the Radnor-1 downhole location.
Cadenhead said newly acquired 3D seismic data had been utilised to target the new location updip of Stratford-1 and across a fault from Radnor-1, which about two years ago flowed at average rates of 6MMcfd of gas and 350bpd of condensate before watering out.
“We’re optimistic the electric log indicators will yield results,” he said.
“With an idle gas production facility onsite already, we plan to conduct a short clean-up test to the flare pit. If we are happy with the test results, we’ll shut the well in for a pressure build-up and hook the well up to the production facility.”
Participants in the sidetrack operation are operator TAG (which holds a 33.33% stake) and Bridge Petroleum (33.33%), with TAG assuming another 33.33% interest on a sole-risk basis. TAG is entitled to recover 15 times the cost of the sole-risk venture before any revenue reverts back to the partner that did not participate in the operation, Westech Energy New Zealand.
Methanex NZ paid for the first Radnor well to be drilled and still has first rights to gas from any subsequent wells to fuel its sole surviving New Zealand facility, the Waitara Valley methanol plant.
