In another move, Total is in talks to assume control of two discoveries – Calulu and Muzongue – in Block 33. ExxonMobil previously operated Block 33 but withdrew, leaving the other partners Sonangol, Galp, Falcon Oil and Nir to share out its stake
ExxonMobil's well, that has been drilled in Block 33, offshore northern Angola has come up dry. ExxonMobil was awarded the license for the block in 1999 and this is the second deepwater well to come up dry in the area.
ExxonMobil was awarded the license for the block in 1999 and this is the second deepwater well to come up dry in the area. The first well, drilled further north late last year by British Petroleum, was also a dry hole.
The first well, drilled further north late last year by British Petroleum, was also a dry hole. The well was drilled by the semi-submersible Leiv Eiriksson. The well was drilled by the semi-submersible Leiv Eiriksson.
Because of big discoveries since 1996 in a neighboring string of licenses, oil companies had joined a bidding frenzy for blocks 31 to 34, operated respectively by BP, TotalFinaElf, ExxonMobil and state oil company Sonangol, and ultimately paid $1.2 billion in non recoverable signature bonuses to Angola.
An oil industry official said that the companies would now have to reconsider their exploration strategies in the region. He said the first two failed wells had been drilled on geological targets that were very large, but with a relatively low chance of finding oil.
However, the licenses also contain geological structures whose seismic images show "flat spots", indicating that there is a high chance of finding oil. Unfortunately, these structures tend to be small, which means it may be costly to develop them, given the water depths involved.
"Everyone is going to start drilling the flat spots now," said the official. "Perhaps they can develop them as clusters, though they are also quite far apart."
Partners in Block 33 are ExxonMobil as operator with a 45% interest, Sonangol holds 20%, TotalFinaElf holds 15%, Falcon Oil holds 10%, Petrogal 5% and NIR Angola holds the remaining 5%.
In Block 33, the initial exploration phase has been completed and the economic-financial feasibility of the discovered oil is in currently being assessed.
Accumulated depreciation and adjustments at 31 December 2005 include tEuros 53,332 relating to adjustments to the amount of fixed assets, as follows: i) tEuros 33,321 to cover the write off of assets relating to Block 33 in Angola;
At 31 December 2005 Petrogal had an impairment adjustment of the gross amount of fixed assets in progress totalling tEuros 33,321, corresponding to the total cost incurred (including contract premiums) on Block 33 in Angola, due to the reduced prospects of future commercial discovery, based on studies carried out in 2005 (Note 43).
COPYRIGHT 2007 Energy Intelligence Group ANGOLA--State-owned Sonangol drew a big crowd to last week's licensing round roadshow in London, even though its style has been cramped by disappointments on nearby acreage and Exxon Mobil's plans to exit ultra-deep Block 33. Sonangol is offering a wide spread of risk suitable for a variety of budgets (PIW Sep.24,p8).
Ultra-deep Blocks 46, 47 and 48 are likely to appeal to big players with deep pockets, while smaller foreign and Angolan companies are more likely to go for onshore Cabinda Centro, which, like the ultradeep blocks, lies in the prolific Congo Basin. But interest could be dulled by news that Roc Oil's latest two wells drilled on the neighboring Cabinda South Block were noncommercial, despite a promising start earlier this year when the Australian independent spoke of discoveries of 170 million bbl of heavy oil. Exxon has confirmed no shows on Block 33 and has indicated plans to withdraw, with Sonangol now negotiating with Total to take over the operatorship.
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