TotalEnergies to start Infill Drilling Offshore Nigeria in February 2023

TotalEnergies is expected to start its much-anticipated infill drilling campaign offshore Nigeria in February 2023, its partner Africa Oil Corp. has said.

The major has been planning a new drilling campaign on its flagship deepwater block OML 130 for some time, with an initial start scheduled for Q3 2022. The campaign will focus on infill drilling and could target up to 9 wells, including 2 exploration/appraisal ones.  Exploratory drilling could notably focus on the Egina Ridge and Egina South prospects.

“The rig contracted to drill the Egina infill wells is expected to commence operations in February 2023, after obtaining its final regulatory approval,” Africa Oil Corp. said in a production and operational update released today. The company is a 50% shareholder in Prime Oil & Gas, which itself holds a 16% interest in OML 130.

While the rig selected is yet to be announced, Hawilti’s Offshore Drilling Tracker shows that Noble Corp.’s Gerry de Souza drillship is a likely candidate. The rig completed a drilling campaign for TotalEnergies offshore Suriname in December 2022 and arrived in West Africa at the end of last year, data from Marine Traffic shows.