"Shell has submitted its core environmental report to South Africa’s authorities covering a high-profile exploration campaign in the Orange basin. The government has until June 2025 to grant environmental authorisation for the supermajor to drill up to two probes in the Northern Cape Ultra Deep (NCUD) block, located near TotalEnergies’ huge oil and gas finds in Namibia, as early as 2026.
Last June, Shell indicated it could drill as many as five probes in this ultra-deepwater asset which is adjacent to South Africa’s maritime boundary with Namibia and also close to the company’s own discoveries — now written off — in Namibia. News of this plan initially emerged after Shell filed documents with the South African authorities that outlined its drilling plans for NCUD. A draft environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) report was made available for public comment in November and, at the end of February, a final ESIA was submitted to the government. Located at least 300 kilometres off the coast, NCUD covers an area of 5254 square kilometres in water depths between 2500 and 3200 metres.
According to the final ESIA report, the start of the drilling campaign is likely to be in 2026 or 2027, with each well to be drilled to a maximum depth below the seabed of 4570 metres. The filing assumes that two exploration wells will be drilled in the first year of operations and three in the second year. However, if the first well spuds in late 2026, the drilling of five wells could potentially be spread over three years. Each well is expected to take about two months to drill, with a further six days for testing and about two weeks for plugging and abandonment."
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