An ultra-deepwater appraisal well has confirmed good connectivity between the large Jupiter oil, gas, and condensate discovery offshore Brazil and the nearby Bracuhy discovery in the presalt Santos basin.

Operator Petrobras said in a press release it had completed drilling well 3-BRSA-1183-RJS (3-RJS-713) in Block BM-S-24, the third well drilled in the Jupiter area. The well confirmed a hydrocarbon column of about 160 m (525 ft), starting at a depth of 5,322 m (17,461 ft), containing rocks of good porosity and permeability characteristics. In addition to the gas cap and condensate, Petrobras confirmed that the well also hit an oil column about 100-m (328-ft) thick.

A further appraisal well and a formation test are planned for the oil-bearing zone to verify its characteristics and the reservoirs’ productivity in 2014. The latest well is located 26 km (16 miles) northeast of the original Jupiter discovery well (1-RJS-652A) made in January 2008, which detected a large gas (natural gas and CO2), condensate, and oil deposit.

Samples collected from the new well have confirmed that these are the same fluids as those found in wildcat well 1-RJS-652A and in extension well 3-RJS-683A (Jupiter NE). The latest well was drilled to a total depth of 5,765 m (18,915 ft) some 267 km (166 miles) offshore in a water depth of 2,251 m (7,386 ft).

Petrobras said in the release the consortium would now proceed with activities as outlined in the discovery evaluation plan approved by Brazil’s National Petroleum, Natural Gas, and Biofuels Agency (ANP). Petrobras is the operator (80%) with its partner being Galp Energia (20%).

Partner Galp added in a separate release that production from Block BM-S-24 is expected in 2019.