Pendalian-3 will appraise the oil field discovered in 1993 by the Pendalian-1 well, a cored slim hole which encountered a number of oil zones at depths ranging from 250-500m, according to Oilex.

“Two shallow zones in the Sihapas Sandstone flowed oil from cased hole tests in Pendalian-1, one at 530 barrels per day,” the company said.

Pendalian has four oil zones with the shallowest at about 450m and basement at 800m. Despite these depths, the reservoirs have a strong water drive.

“The testing program is planned to commence with deeper zones which appear to be less well developed and were not tested in the earlier wells,” Oilex said.

“Successively shallower zones, including the productive reservoir confirmed previously in Pendalian-1 will be tested towards the end of the program.”

Drilling operations are planned to take 13 days following which the well will be cased and a comprehensive 14-day, multi-zone testing program will be undertaken, Oilex said.

If a cased hole testing program confirms commercial productivity, the West Kampar Joint Venture plans to acquire a 3D seismic survey over the Pendalian Field and several satellite structures and to accelerate development, according to Oilex.

“Shallow, low-cost wells and the proximity to infrastructure are attractive incentives for the rapid development of the field,” the company said.

“Early cash flow generated by Pendalian production will be applied to the exploration of highly prospective trends that have been recognised on the block.”

Oilex has previously said it was attracted to the block more by the exploration upside than by the existing discovery.

Chevron's giant Minas and Duri oil fields are only 25km from the northern block boundary and the northern part of the permit lies within the prospective Daludalu structural trend, which has shallow Miocene-age reservoirs.

Participants in the West Kampar Production Sharing Contract are: PT Sumatera Persada Energi (operator and 55%) and Oilex (45%).