Noble Energy, Inc. announced on 16 June that it has reached an agreement with BP Exploration & Production Inc. to acquire interest in 17 deepwater exploration leases located in the Atwater Valley region of the Gulf of Mexico (GOM).
According to the terms of agreement, Noble Energy will acquire a 50% working interest in 13 deepwater leases, along with an average 26% interest in four additional leases. Noble Energy will add 50% interest in the Bright prospect located in Atwater Valley Block 362, which is currently being drilled by the ENSCO DS-4 drillship in water depths of 5600ft. Noble plans to drill the Bright prospect to 13500ft TD, targeting multiple Upper and Middle Miocene reservoirs. Noble’s total estimated gross unrisked resource range (P75 - P25) for the Bright prospect is 90-350MMboe.
The agreement reflects Noble Energy’s growing presence in the Gulf; all 17 leases are located in the Atwater Valley protraction area, an area that drew significant interest at the Central GOM Lease Sale 231 in March. Through the agreement with BP, currently the largest operator in the Gulf, Noble Energy has gained access to an area that saw bids from Anadarko, Cobalt Energy, and ExxonMobil during the last lease sale. In addition to the Bright prospect, there are multiple follow-on exploration opportunities that have been identified on these newly-acquired leases.
Susan M. Cunningham, Noble Energy's senior vice president, Gulf of Mexico, West Africa, and Frontier, said: "The deepwater Gulf of Mexico is one of Noble Energy's core areas and today we have expanded our opportunity set there through the successful capture of a number of attractive and sizeable prospects. We have multiple opportunities for substantial hydrocarbon discovery in the near-term”
Outside of the Atwater Valley region, Noble continues to capitalize on its exploration programs. The company’s Dantlzer project, located in Mississippi Canyon Block 782, is expected to achieve first production in the coming months. The first Dantzler exploration well discovered hydrocarbons in December 2013, gross resources are estimated at 55-95MMboe. Noble Energy operates Dantzler with a 45% interest, in partnership with Ridgewood Energy Corporation and W&T Energy VI, LLC who control 35% and 20%, respectively.
“In addition to our exploration programs, we are also currently drilling a second well at Dantzler as we progress multiple major projects toward first production." Cunningham continued.
The Bright prospect is expected to be at its total depth by the end of 3Q 2014.
Image: Ensco DS-4 drillship.
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