Business
3D Seismic Update
3D Seismic Update.
About this update from Rockhopper Exploration Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n Rockhopper Exploration plc\n31 October 2007\n\n\nPress Release\n\nFor immediate release: 31 October 2007\n\n\n 3D Interpretation Update\n\n Large basin margin fans and structural closures identified\n\nRockhopper Exploration plc ('the Company' or 'Rockhopper') is pleased to\nannounce that an initial interpretation of the 3D seismic data collected over\nits licences PL032 and PL033 in the Falkland Islands has revealed large fans and\nstructural closures which could form targets for the next round of drilling. The\nlargest fans cover approximately 40sq km and are located near to the Shell well\nwhich recovered live oil.\n\nThe 3D data were collected by CGGVeritas between November 2006 and January 2007\nover licences PL032 and PL033, which were formerly held by Shell. Two wells were\ndrilled by Shell on this acreage during 1998. Live oil was recovered from one,\nwhile oil and gas shows were found in the other. The collection of 3D over the\nsites of the wells allows Rockhopper to significantly reduce exploration risk.\n\nThe new Rockhopper 3D survey covers an area of 850 km2 and shows a number of\nlarge targets which could be drilled during the next phase. Amplitude mapping\nindicates the presence of prominent fan-shaped anomalies along the eastern basin\nmargin at the level of the main Post-rift source rock sequence. Two of these\nanomalies appear to coalesce and extend across a combined area of approximately\n40 sq. km (which for the purposes of comparison, is slightly smaller by area\nthan the Buzzard field in the North Sea). Neither fan anomaly has been tested by\nthe two existing wells. These fans represent one of the largest prospects by\narea so far identified in the Rockhopper portfolio. The fans are located near to\nthe Shell well which recovered live oil to the surface and are in an area of the\nbasin known to be generating oil. While oil shows were encountered in the centre\nof the basin in the previous Shell wells, the eastern margin of the basin\nremains completely untested.\n\nIn addition, a number of structural closures have been mapped along the eastern\nbasin margin. The largest structural closure identified to date is some 20km in\nlength from north to south, closing against the eastern basin margin. The\npresence of basin margin closures and the identification of fan-shaped anomalies\nwere the main targets of ...