VAALCO Energy has completed its Phase 3 offshore drilling program in Gabon, bringing the ETSEM-3H development well into production. The company has also moved the Borr Norve drilling rig away from the SE Etame platform and started its Baobab Phase 5 drilling campaign offshore Côte d’Ivoire.
At the SE Etame field in Gabon, VAALCO drilled and completed the ETSEM-3H well in an attic location, targeting 300 meters of net pay in high-quality Gamba reservoir sands along the horizontal section of the well. The well recorded an initial stabilized production rate of approximately 2,000 gross barrels of oil per day (BOPD), including 1,140 BOPD net to VAALCO.
The company has now completed its Phase 3 drilling program in Gabon and demobilized the Borr Norve drilling rig from the field.
Offshore Côte d’Ivoire, VAALCO has started its Baobab Phase 5 drilling campaign by preparing the top-hole sections of the planned wells in batches. The company will complete the wells and bring them into production one after another once it finishes drilling the initial sections across the program.
The campaign includes four production wells, three water-injection wells and two workovers. VAALCO expects the first new production well to come online towards the end of 2026, with the program expected to increase production significantly in 2027.
VAALCO Chief Executive Officer George Maxwell said the ETSEM-3H well had delivered positive results and was now producing approximately 2,000 gross BOPD, or 1,140 BOPD net to the company. He confirmed that the well marked the end of the Phase 3 drilling campaign in Gabon, with the rig now removed from the field.
Maxwell added that VAALCO had started the Baobab Phase 5 campaign in Côte d’Ivoire following the successful restart of the Baobab field in the second quarter. He reiterated that the company plans to drill four production wells and three water-injection wells and carry out two workovers, with the first new producer expected online towards the end of 2026 and further production growth anticipated in 2027. He said the company would continue to focus on increasing production, reserves, and shareholder value.
source: oilreviewafrica.com
African Energy Council