By Gunjur News Online
FAR Limited’s oil exploration offshore Gambia has been unsuccessful following the Samo-1 drilling of 3240m revealed water, instead of prospects of the anticipated 825 million barrels of oil in the blocks A2 and A5.
The Stena Drillmax arrived in The Gambia and on site on Sunday, 21st October. The Samo-1 well was successfully spudded following standard pre-drill operations.
FAR Limited’s Managing Director Cath Norman had this to say about the unsuccessful Samo-1 drilling:
“The result in the Samo-1 well is not in line with our pre-drill expectations, however it is providing an abundance of new subsurface information that will help us understand the geological play along the shelf edge – an area which remains grossly underexplored. The FAR team has identified a portfolio of prospects and leads in the A2 and A5 permits and the data from Samo-1 will be used to further mature and derisk these for future drilling. Drilling the first well offshore Gambia for 40 years has drawn attention to this well and the result is a reminder of the risks we face in our business. We are pleased to receive a six-month extension to the licence, which will allow the JV to formulate and move on with plans to drill next year, after integrating the results from Samo-1 into the regional geological model. I would like to express my appreciation to the drilling operations teams in the safe and efficient delivery of our first well in The Gambia”
FAR Limited acquired 80% stake in the oil blocks from the government of The Gambia, and in turn sold 40% share of the blocks to PETRONAS to Fund the drilling exercise.
Meanwhile the Government has extended FAR Limited’s licence to June 2019 to allow the company to analyse the data from the Samo-1 failed drill.
Gambians have been very hopeful and optimistic that an estimated 1 billion barrels of oil offshore Gambia will help transform the tiny West African country into a more prosperous and developed country of the oil gains are properly utilised.
The unsuccessful drilling of Samo-1 prospect will surely dash hopes from both within and outside the country.
FAR Limited’s share prices plunged by 38 percent to 8c following the news of the Samo-1.
This begs the question: How did FAR Limited get this estimate so far off the mark? From an estimated prospect of 825 million barrels of oil to simply water with few traces of oil at various stages of the drilling of a 3240m dept well! According to FAR Limited, the Samo-1 well will now be sealed and abandoned, while they study data from the drill exercise.