Rhino Resources Ltd. announced it discovered hydrocarbons at the Capricornus 1-X well, located in Petroleum Exploration License (PEL) 85, Block 2914, offshore Namibia’s Orange Basin.
The Noble Venturer drillship spudded the well on February 17 and reached a total depth of 16,263 feet by April 2, according to Rhino’s statement. The company found over 124 feet of net pay with good petrophysical properties and no water contact.
Rhino collected hydrocarbon samples and sidewall cores through intensive wireline logging operations. They also completed a production test across the light oil-bearing reservoir.
The well achieved a surface-constrained flow rate of more than 11,000 stock tank barrels per day on a 40/64” choke, producing light ~37° API oil with minimal gas and less than two percent CO₂, and no hydrogen sulfide.
Rhino said it will conduct laboratory studies on the collected fluid samples. The company will now temporarily plug and abandon the well and release the rig.
Rhino Resources operates PEL 85 with a 42.5 percent working interest, while Azule Energy holds another 42.5 percent, NAMCOR 10 percent, and Korres Investments 5 percent. BP and Eni jointly own Azule Energy, each with a 50 percent stake.
Travis Smithard, CEO of Rhino Resources, expressed excitement over the hydrocarbon discovery at Capricornus 1-X, highlighting the successful wireline and testing programs that confirmed a high-quality light oil-bearing reservoir with no water contact.
Smithard praised the Rhino team and service partners for safely drilling two deepwater wells consecutively in a geologically complex environment.
He added that Rhino and its partners Azule Energy, NAMCOR, and Korres would now focus on analyzing post-drilling results to guide their next exploration steps.
BP and Eni both confirmed the preliminary results of Capricornus 1-X in separate statements on their websites.
Back in February, Rhino completed drilling its first PEL 85 exploration well, Sagittarius 1-X, spudded on December 18, 2024, and reached total depth by February 6. The well intersected a hydrocarbon reservoir with no water contact.
Smithard celebrated the safe and successful completion of the Sagittarius 1-X drilling, noting that the hydrocarbon find demonstrated an active petroleum system, although further evaluation is needed.
He also announced that the team would immediately shift focus to the Capricornus prospect, expecting to spud the Capricornus-1X well within 24 hours and complete drilling in about 47 days.
Meanwhile, in February, Galp reported it had successfully drilled, cored, and logged the Mopane-3X well in Petroleum Exploration License 83 (PEL 83), offshore Namibia.
Preliminary results from Galp confirmed light oil and gas-condensate columns in AVO-10 and light oil columns in AVO-13 and deeper sand layers, all within high-quality sandstones.
Galp noted that log measures showed good porosity, high pressures, and high permeabilities, while initial fluid samples revealed low viscosity and minimal CO₂ and H₂S concentrations. These samples were sent for lab testing.
In April, Galp announced that hydrocarbon in-place estimates for the Mopane complex alone were 10 billion barrels of oil equivalent or higher, even before further exploration and appraisal drilling.
source:www.rigzone.com
African Energy Council