DNO, the Norwegian oil and gas operator, announced that the Peshkabir-2 well currently drilling in the Kurdistan region of Iraq has discovered oil in the Cretaceous horizon in the southern flank of the Peshkabir field. The well flowed at a stable rate of 3,800 barrels of 28° API oil per day from an open hole test of a 170-meter interval. Peshkabir-2 was spudded last October to explore the Cretaceous horizon and appraise the previously tested deeper Jurassic reservoir on a 2012 discovery 18 kilometers to the west of the company’s flagship Tawke field. Following acquisition of new 3-D seismic, Peshkabir-2 was originally planned for 2015 but delayed following the drop in world oil prices and interruption in payments for the company’s production and exports from Kurdistan. The well, currently drilling ahead of schedule and under budget, is expected to reach total depth of 3,500 meters and will be completed in the Jurassic by early February.
DNO is considering a number of options to step up appraisal of the new Cretaceous discovery including a geological side-track in the central part of the Peshkabir structure or a third well. Options are also under consideration for possible early Peshkabir production and trucking to the company’s gathering, processing and export facilities at Fish Khabur some 12 kilometers away. (Source: DNO)