The 3478-tonne vessel, together with the support vessel Raubtier, arrived at Port Taranaki from Melbourne yesterday and left the same day for perhaps several weeks of shooting in Taranaki waters.
The scheduled surveys for the vessels include acquiring 500-600 square kilometres of 3D seismic data for PEP 38485 operator OMV New Zealand and its partners. Then the vessel will shoot about 240 sq.km for PEP 38491 operator Transworld Exploration and Production and its partners. Finally it will acquire about 150 sq.km for PEP 39495 operator Swift Energy New Zealand and Mighty River Power.
There are also rumours other joint ventures active in Taranaki and other geological basins may also decide to use the Orient Explorer, given the globally tight supply situation for rigs, seismic ships and other vessels.
The OMV survey is to be shot around the Kora prospect that Californian company Arco Petroleum drilled in the late 1980s, while the Swift Energy-MRP survey covers the Kaheru prospect identified but never drilled last decade by Fletcher Challenge Energy.
And next week the Pacific Titan survey vessel is due back in New Zealand waters – after shooting approximately 3000 km of seismic for Crown Minerals off the East Coast earlier this year - for an extended 2D program covering several months, several basins and many permits.
The arrival of these vessels marks what is believed to be New Zealand’s busiest offshore seismic season ever.
The Norwegian companies Multiwave Geophysical Company, using the Pacific Titan, and Petroleum Geo-Services (PGS), using the Orient Explorer, are acquiring the data on behalf of the various joint ventures.
The PEP 39485 partners are: operator OMV New Zealand (33.333%), Origin Energy Resources (33.333%) and Todd Petroleum Mining (33.333%).
The PEP 38491 partners are: operator Transworld Exploration and Production (through its North Taranaki Exploration Ltd subsidiary) (40%), Mighty River Power (40%) and Westech Energy New Zealand (20%).
The PEP 48495 partners are: operator Swift Energy New Zealand (50%) and MRP (50%).
