?A U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) assessment estimates that the area north of the Arctic Circle has 90 billion barrels of undiscovered, technically recoverable conventional oil, 1,670 trillion cubic feet of technically recoverable conventional gas, and 44 billion barrels of technically recoverable natural-gas liquids in 25 geologically defined areas with potential for petroleum. The USGS-estimated resources account for about 22% of the undiscovered, technically recoverable resources in the world, and about 84% of the estimated resources may occur offshore.
More than 50% of the estimated, undiscovered oil resources occur in three geologic provinces: Arctic Alaska, the Amerasia Basin, and the East Greenland Rift Basins, while more than 70% of the undiscovered gas is estimated to occur in the West Siberian Basin, the East Barents Basins, and Arctic Alaska.
Petroleum News reports that the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Healy traveled to the Arctic with U.S. scientists to determine the extent of the continental shelf north of Alaska and to create a 3-D map of the Arctic Ocean floor. In September, the Healy and a Canadian icebreaker with Canadian scientists were to collect sediment thickness data.

?1 Trinidad
Canadian Superior Energy Inc. made a significant offshore Trinidad gas discovery. The Bounty exploration well, drilled to 17,360 ft. in Block 5(c), encountered approximately 200 ft. of pay. Initial results indicate 200 million cu. ft. per day and other data indicate a gas resource potential of up to 2.6 trillion cu. ft. Production flow-testing was restricted to a stabilized rate of 60 million cu. ft. per day with a flowing bottom-hole pressure of 7,186 psi. The find is the second for Calgary-based Canadian Superior on Block 5(c), and it plans to spud a third wildcat shortly.

2 Norway
During the first five months of StatoilHydro’s 2008 drilling program, the company has made a dozen discoveries. Many are close to existing pipeline and production infrastructure. One interesting find is Obesum in the Barents Sea. The well was drilled in Block 7222/6, approximately 175 kilometers northwest of Hammerfest. The 7222/6-1 S was drilled to a total depth of 2,825 meters in 364 meters of water. It encountered hydrocarbons in Middle Triassic sandstones, but was not formation-tested. Another test is planned later this year. Altogether, StatoilHydro plans more than 70 exploration wells in its 2008 program, the largest and most expensive in its history at $3.4 billion. Several discoveries have been made, with 17 wells under development, 13 on the Norwegian continental shelf and four internationally.

3 Norway
BG’s Jordbaer discovery has tested at rates of 7,500 bbl. per day of light oil, says Stavanger, Norway-based partner Revus Energy. The discovery was drilled on Norwegian North Sea production license 373S in 400 meters of water to a total depth of 4,057 meters. It was completed in the Triassic Statfjord formation and has been plugged and abandoned. A sidetrack will be drilled to determine the resource potential of the Jordbaer central fault compartment. Idemitsu and RWE-Dea are also partners in the find.

4 Angola
Angola’s state-owned Sonangol, BP, and its partners will develop a series of deepwater oil discoveries in Block 31 offshore Angola. The first project will be the Plutao, Saturno, Venus and Marte (PSVM) fields in the northeast sector of Block 31, in a water depth of 6,562 ft. and about 250 miles northwest of Luanda. The field will have 48 production, gas and water-injection plus infill wells, 15 manifolds and associated subsea equipment, 170 kilometers of flowlines and 95 kilometers of control umbilicals. Construction work is expected for 2008, with oil production in 2011 and full-scale production of about 150,000 bbl. per day by 2012. BP and its partners have made 15 discoveries in Block 31 to date. Also in Angola, Marathon Oil plans to sell a 20% stake in deepwater offshore Angola Block 32. Reuters reported that adjacent blocks 31 and 32 together hold almost 3 billion bbl. of oil equivalent that have already been discovered.

5 Egypt
Apache Corp.’s Heqet-2 appraisal well in the Greater Khalda area is producing approximately 2,100 bbl. of oil per day from the Jurassic Safa formation.?IHS Inc. reports that Heqet-2 was drilled to a total depth of 14,700 ft. and is located about a half-mile from the Heqet-1 discovery in the Faghur Basin. Apache credits improved fracture-stimulation technology for turning a marginal play into a potentially significant oil accumulation. Apache also reported that the Umbarka-174 well tested approximately 4,300 bbl. of oil per day from perforations in the Alam El Bueib sand in a 40-year-old field also located in the greater Khalda area. The Houston-based company is planning four wildcats targeting Jurassic oil pools in the Heqet and Neith South areas and is studying other ways to increase productivity through fracture stimulation.

6 Iran
IHS Inc. reports that Iran’s National Iranian Oil Co. discovered a field with in-place oil reserves of 525 million bbl. With 136 billion bbl. in reserves, this new discovery is a significant addition to Iran’s supply. The discovery, announced in July 2008, was reported near the southern port city of Assaluyeh. The IHS Middle East team believes this well to be Assaluyeh East 1, a wildcat that was suspended in April 2008 after testing up to 1,500 bbl. per day of light, sweet oil in a gas-prone region of the Zagros fold belt.

7 India
Gujarat State Petroleum Corp. Ltd. drilled its ninth well on the KG-OSN-2001/3 (Krishna-Godavari Offshore) block. The KG-22 was drilled in 91 meters of water to a total depth of 6,007 meters in basement. Gas was recovered on three drillstem tests; the best flow was at a rate of 23.7 million cu. ft. with 84 bbl. of condensate a day at a wellhead flowing pressure of 4,950 psi from a 17-meter perforated interval between 4,652-72 meters.

8 Australia
Hess Corp., New York, reported its second consecutive major gas find during a four-well series of the WA-390-P license in the Exmouth sub-basin, in the North Carnarvon Basin. The Briseis 1 exploration well established a 46-meter gas column.?Hess has committed to drill 16 wells within the first three years at a cost of $469 million on the North West Shelf. The license is south and west of Gorgon and Jansz gas fields, which have combined gas reserves of 40 trillion cu. ft., and which Chevron Corp. is seeking to develop for LNG exports. Hess estimated the potential gas resource in its WA-390-P permit at between 2- and 15 trillion cu. ft.?

9 Australia
In the WA-344-P license in the Caswell sub-basin off Western Australia, shareholders Inpex (60% interest) and Total (40% interest) made a significant Mimia-1 discovery. Located in 254 meters of water, the well encountered a 72-meter gas column, and production test results have not yet been released, according to E&P Daily.?WA-344-P covers 667 sq. kilometers and is approximately 20 kilometers northeast of the giant Ichthys gas/condensate find. Ichthys has recoverable resources of 13 trillion cu. ft. of gas and 530 million bbl. of oil. In related news, Inpex is considering locating Ichthys field development facilities in the Darwin region at the Blaydin Point site in the Northern Territories.

10 Papua New Guinea
In Papua New Guinea, InterOil Corp.’s Elk-4 appraisal test-flowed at a rate of 63 million cu. ft. of gas per day and produced 1,130 bbl. of high-quality condensate per day after completion in Elk-Antelope reservoirs. The flows match test flows from the Elk-1 discovery well. Canadian-based InterOil plans to use the Elk-Antelope reservoirs as feedstock for an ExxonMobil-led LNG development project. E&P Daily reports that InterOil is offering about 20% of its core assets in Papua New Guinea to fund its share of costs for a proposed LNG project. Other joint-venture partners for the proposed LNG project are Merrill Lynch Commodities and Pacific­LNG. InterOil’s assets consist of mostly Papua New Guinea petroleum licenses and four discoveries, including Elk and Antelope gas fields, which will feed the planned LNG project.

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