TotalFinaElf reports that the OKIOC consortium has successfully drilled and tested its Kashagan East-2 well, located on the massive Kashagan structure about 50 miles south of Atyrau in the Kazak sector of the Caspian Sea. Kashagan is thought to contain as much as 50 billion barrels of oil in place; the recovery factor could be as high as 50%. The Kashagan East-2 was drilled to a depth of 13,590 feet and flowed oil at the rate of 7,400 barrels per day during testing. The rate was limited by testing constraints, notes TotalFinaElf. The appraisal well, the third drilled on the Kashagan structure, is about five miles north of the Kashagan East-1 discovery. That 16,400-foot well, drilled in 10 feet of water, encountered oil-bearing Paleozoic carbonates below 13,124 feet. A test in the lower part of the interval flowed 3,700 barrels of oil and 7 million cubic feet of gas per day. The second well, Kashagan West-1, an exploratory test 25 miles west of the discovery, flowed at a rate of up to 3,400 barrels of 42-to 45-degree API gravity oil and 7.6 million cubic feet of gas per day. TotalFinaElf is a partner in the Agip-operated North Caspian production sharing area. Other OKIOC members are BG, ExxonMobil, Shell, Inpex, Phillips, BP and Statoil. BP and Statoil are currently selling their shares in the project, which will settle ownerships at 16.66% for TotalFinaElf, Shell, Agip, ExxonMobil and BG; Phillips and Inpex will have 8.33% each. 1 Canada Canadian 88 Energy Corp., Calgary, has successfully drilled a significant deep gas well (Canadian 88 et al Blackstone 4-10-45-16W5) in the Blackstone area of western Alberta, says Calgary-based Canadian Discovery Ltd. The outpost well, drilled to a total depth of 4,788 meters, is a major stepout to the prolific Blackstone Devonian Swan Hills gas pool. Drill and log results indicate a 30-meter pay zone in highly porous dolomite that averages 10% porosity, which is analogous to other wells in the pool. The Blackstone pool, located 240 kilometers northwest of Calgary, has been producing since the mid-1980s. To date, it has produced 404 billion cu. ft. of sales gas from three wells; some 355 billion cu. ft. still remains to be produced. <$iBP Canada Energy Co. > is currently producing two wells in the pool, each at a rate of approximately 50 million cu. ft. per day. 2 Canada A significant heavy-oil discovery has been made by BlackRock Ventures Inc. at Seal in northern Alberta, about 60 kilometers east of Peace River, says Canadian Discovery. The Calgary-based company has drilled three horizontal wells to vertical depths of 625 meters in the Cretaceous Bluesky formation. The initial well, drilled from a surface location at 13-23-83-15W5M, has been producing 300 bbl. of oil per day during a 130-day production test; the second well reached 375 bbl. per day during a 30-day test. A third well has been completed with encouraging results. According to BlackRock, the play has the potential to be one of the largest primary heavy-oil discoveries in recent years. The company is planning to drill five more wells at Seal in the next six months and has identified a minimum of 30 follow-up development locations from the wells drilled to date. 3 Canada Impact Energy Inc., Calgary, has completed a dual-zone gas discovery on its exploration lands at Laprise in northeastern British Columbia. The wildcat discovery well (Impact et al. Laprise C-42-A-94-G-8) was drilled to a total depth of 1,560 meters in the Triassic. Gas-bearing zones were encountered in the Triassic Baldonnel and the Halfway formations, with calculated net gas pay of 23 meters and 14 meters, respectively. The Baldonnel flow tested at 3 million cu. ft. of raw gas per day with a flowing tubing pressure of 825 psi; the Halfway zone production tested at rates of 1.4 million cu. ft. of raw gas per day at a flowing tubing pressure of 350 psi. The company has identified up to six follow-up locations on 12 sections of company land and plans to spud a second location. 4 Canada A southeast Saskatchewan horizontal well drilled by Lexxor Energy Inc., Calgary, produced 2,575 bbls of light crude oil in a 68-hour test. The well, drilled at 11-24-006-32W1M in the Redvers area, appears to be targeting the Mississippian Tilston Beds that produce from a number of pools in the region, says Canadian Discovery. The company intends to drill six more horizontal wells in the area during the next nine months. The first well in the planned series was licensed Oct. 1 and is expected to spud shortly. 5 Argentina TotalFinaElf, operator of the Cuenca Marina Austral-1 consortium, says that the group will begin developing Carina and Aries gas fields, offshore Tierra del Fuego. The partners plan to install a platform on each field and drill seven extended reach wells. First production from Carina, in 60 meters of water, and Aries, in 80 meters of water, is expected in mid-2003. The $400-million project will have a plateau production rate of 420 million cu. ft. per day. The consortium comprises TotalFinaElf, with a 37.5% interest; <$iWintershall Energia >, 37.5%; and <$iPan American Energy >, 25%. 6 U.K. North Sea After decades of waiting, Clair Field will finally be developed. A BP-led consortium has submitted proposals for a $940-million development field 75 kilometers west of Shetland in water depths of 140 meters. Clair, discovered in 1977, was not developed because of complex, highly faulted geology. The field covers 220 square kilometers and contains more than 4 billion bbl. of oil in place. Construction is expected to start early next year and the field would come onstream in 2004, producing 60,000 barrels of oil and 15 million cu. ft. of gas per day. BP operates the field and holds a 28.6% interest; Conoco, 24%; Chevron, 19.4%; Enterprise, 18.7%; and Amerada Hess, 9.3%. 7 Egypt Ocean Energy Inc. has completed a successful exploratory well on its East Zeit concession, offshore Egypt in the Gulf of Suez. The Houston-based independent drilled the East Zeit A-21 to a total depth of 16,300 ft. and encountered approximately 745 ft. of oil pay. Ocean says the discovery, which will be placed on production immediately, could add another 40- to 80 million barrels of gross reserves to the concession. Delineation and further development of the field is planned for 2002. Ocean holds a 100% working interest in East Zeit Field. 8 Morocco Kerr-McGee Corp. has signed a reconnaissance contract that covers offshore hydrocarbon research in the Western Sahara region. The 42,630-square-mile contract, with water depths of up to 10,000 ft., is in the Boujdour offshore area. Kerr-McGee, based in Oklahoma City, will reprocess existing geological and geophysical data and conduct a new seismic acquisition program. When the contract expires, Kerr-McGee will have the option to convert it into a Petroleum Agreement, allowing it to conduct exploration and production activities in partnership with Onarep, the Moroccan state company. Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony, is a disputed region. 9 Vietnam An offshore well in the Cuu Long Basin is an oil discovery, says Conoco. The Sutu Vang 1X was drilled in Block 15-1, about 120 miles southeast of Ho Chi Minh City. The well tested from fractured basement at a stabilized rate of 11,388 bbl. of oil per day through a 48/64-in. choke. The company says Sutu Vang (Golden Lion) could ultimately produce 100- to 400 million bbl. of oil. The find is about four miles southwest of Sutu Den (Black Lion), the first discovery in Block 15-1, which contains 200- to 400 million bbl. of oil. A third prospect in the block, Sutu Trang (White Lion), is to be drilled in 2002. Partners in the block, operated by Cuu Long Joint Operating Co., are Conoco, with 23.25%; PetroVietnam, 50%; Korean National Oil Corp., 14.25%; SK Corp., 9%; and Geopetrol, 3.5%. 10 Indonesia A successful test has been reported in South Natuna Sea Block B's Kerisi Field, says operator Conoco. The Kerisi-3 well flowed oil at a rate of 2,580 bbl. per day and encountered 130 ft. of oil-bearing zones in several reservoirs. The well increases the potential gross recoverable oil in the Kerisi field by 30 million bbl. of oil and 90 billion cu. ft. of gas. Kerisi Field lies 15 miles north of Block B's Belanak Field, which has gross recoverable reserves estimated at 530 billion cu. ft. of gas and 100 million bbl. of oil, condensate and LPG. Conoco will produce Kerisi through the Belanak infrastructure, currently under development. Block B partners are Conoco, with a 40% working interest; Inpex, 35%; and ChevronTexaco, 25%. 11 New Zealand Hardman Resources NL, Perth, and Bounty Oil & Gas NL have been granted Petroleum Exploration Permit 38215, which covers 11,655 square kilometers in the Great South Basin, south of New Zealand. Hardman will operate the joint venture. There have been few wells drilled in the frontier area. During the first three years of their venture, the partners plan to shoot seismic and drill an exploration well. Hardman and Bounty each have a 43.75% percent stake in the project; Albatross Energy Pty, 10%, and McKenzie Petroleum, 2.5%. 12 New Zealand Houston independent Swift Energy Co. continues to report good progress on its operations at its Petroleum Exploration Permit 38719 property on the western coast of North Island. The company will begin testing the potential of 577 ft. of interbedded Kauri sands in its Kauri-A1 well, which has already tested hydrocarbons from the Upper Tariki sand. It is also installing artificial-lift equipment in the Kauri-A2 well, which is productive from a 33-ft. interval in the shallow Manutahi sand. Additionally, the Rimu-B3 well is being sidetracked to target a 210-ft. interval in the Upper Tariki sand just east of its current location. Swift holds a 90% interest in PEP 38719, which extends both onshore and offshore.

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