The Moturoa-2 re-entry operations started yesterday a few hundred metres from the old Republic New Plymouth-4 well, which then-operator, GeoSphere Exploration, re-entered three years ago with mixed results, producing only small amounts of crude from shallow formations such as the Matemateaonga.

Current operator Greymouth (with a 98% stake in the licence PEP 38464) and Maori group Ngati Te Whiti Hapu Society (which holds a 2% interest) will be hoping for better things for Moturoa-2, though perhaps not on as grand a scale as GeoSphere's plans to resurrect the old Moturoa oil field to its former glory.

The joint venture will also be hoping the Moturoa-2 re-entry doesn't prove as troublesome as the original drilling operation, which caused several spectacular gas blowouts, showering nearby beach cottages in oil, mud and debris. There was also a fire which destroyed the drilling rig.

Moturoa-2 was drilled in 1931 and finally closed in 1972 after producing an estimated 80,000 barrels of crude oil.

The latest re-entry by Greymouth is part of a detailed appraisal program designed to gather information ahead of the second stage development of that field. Oil from the Republic New Plymouth-4 well, Moturoa-2 and any subsequent wells can easily be stored on site and tankered to the nearby tank farm before being exported from the nearby Port Taranaki.

The plan is to rejuvenate the well so it meets modern standards and, hopefully discover that its underground oil reserves have built up over the years.