BG Group announced in a press release it successfully completed a drillstem test in the Pweza gas field offshore southern Tanzania, concluding an intensive appraisal program in Block 4.

The Pweza field is approximately 70 km (43 miles) off the Tanzania coast in 1,400 m (4,593 ft) of water. Initial results from a drillstem test on Pweza-3 confirmed both the excellent properties of the Tertiary section reservoir, including flow and connectivity, and BG Group’s understanding and modeling of the field’s geology, the company said.

The Pweza-3 test, the first done in Block 4, flowed at a maximum 1.6 MMcm/d (57 MMcf/d) of gas, constrained by equipment. Importantly, the test demonstrated that development wells could flow at significantly higher rates and that the Pweza reservoir is potentially the most prolific in BG Group’s Tanzania portfolio, according to the press release.

“Our acreage in Block 4 around the Pweza, Chewa, and Ngisi discoveries is now fully appraised and tested, with resources in the order of 4 Tcf [113 Bcm] of natural gas,” Chris Finlayson, BG Group CEO, said in the release. “The work done demonstrates the excellent quality of these fields and that they can be developed as a northern production hub to feed a potential LNG export project.”

The Deepsea Metro-1 drillship will now move south to Block 1 where it will drill a further appraisal well on the Mzia discovery, according to the press release.

BG Group as operator has a 60% interest in blocks 1, 3, and 4 offshore Tanzania, with Ophir Energy holding 40%. The partners are now evaluating 3-D seismic survey data to help identify offshore targets for a new exploration program in 2014.