Sonangol and Angola's National Agency for Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels (ANPG) finished drilling and testing the Katambi-2 appraisal well in Block 24 of the Benguela Basin. A stabilized flow test recorded:
- 41 million cubic feet of gas a day
- 1,160 barrels of condensate a day
- No water or hydrogen sulfide present
The Seadrill-operated drillship West Gemini, contracted through the Sonadrill joint venture, drilled Katambi-2 about 1.3 km from the original Katambi-1 well. BP drilled Katambi-1 in 2014 and 2015, then gave up its stake after judging the discovery commercially unviable.
Thicker pay, higher permeability
Katambi-2 crossed two productive intervals totaling about 331 meters of thickness. Average porosity, the share of rock that can hold fluid, ran between 9% and 12%. Permeability, how easily fluid moves through that rock, came in higher than at the original well.
ANPG called it the first complete drill stem test run on a non-associated gas reservoir, one not linked to an oil accumulation, in Angola. Preliminary results indicate the well could produce more than 100 million cubic feet of gas a day.
Sonangol plans to drill another appraisal well as part of the Katambi project before it finalizes a development plan for Block 24.
