Transworld makes discovery off New Zealand

New Zealand Overseas Petroleum (NZOP), a subsidiary of the Bermuda-registered Transworld Oil group, has made an oil discovery in the Kapuni F sands of the Tui-1 well offshore Taranaki permit PEP 38460. The well is 20 km northwest of the Maui field. Former operator New Zealand Oil and Gas, said the Tui-1 well encountered a gross oil column of 10 mm within the Kapuni F sands, of which 100 % was net oil pay in excellent quality reservoir rocks.
The Ocean Bounty semi-submersible rig drilled the well, its fourth and final well in its New Zealand summer campaign. NZOG exploration manager Eric Matthews said that the partners now hoped to move as early as March to acquire 3D seismic over the Tui prospect with a view to further delineating the prospect and possibly drilling appraisal wells later this year.

Matthews said Tui-1 on its own looked to be a marginal discovery, though if the partners proved up further reserves by subsequent successful appraisal drilling then the field should prove commercial. The implications of oil charge in the Kapuni F sands rather than gas had upgraded the other prospects within the permit. Prospects such as Hector, Tahuroa, and Pukeko could prove to be oil plays.
The primary objective of the well, the Kapuni D Sands, was encountered slightly high to prediction and was associated with only minor oil shows and low levels of cuttings gas. Subsequent wireline logging confirmed that no producible hydrocarbons were present in this interval. The other well target, in the Moki Formation, also proved dry.

When the Kapuni F sands were encountered at 3,655 metres, elevated cuttings-gas and hydrocarbon fluorescence were observed over the uppermost 20 metres of the sand. These observations were interpreted to indicate gas but subsequent evaluation of the wireline data, including MDT fluid sampling, indicated the 10 metre oil column.
Tui-1 reached 3,903 metres TD in early February. The well is to be plugged and abandoned as scheduled.
New Zealand Overseas Petroleum has a 45 % stake in PEP 38460, leaving NZOG, through Stewart Petroleum, with a 20 % interest, NZOG associate Pan Pacific Petroleum, through WM Petroleum, a 15 % interest, and AWE New Zealand Pty. 20 %.