Petroneft re-enters Russian well to find it rich in gas

Company pleased but suspends operations for now due to coronavirus pandemic

David Golder, chairman of PetroNeft Resources. Photograph: Cyril Byrne
David Golder, chairman of PetroNeft Resources. Photograph: Cyril Byrne

Irish oil and gas explorer PetroNeft Resources has re-entered a well in Russia and discovered it to be rich in gas.

The company, which operates in the Tomsk Oblast, Russia, provided an update to Euronext Dublin on Monday in relation to progress of the re-entry of the C-3 well on the Cheremshanskoye field in Licence 67.

The well is located in the southern part of the Cheremshanskoye field, and was originally drilled in 2011, recovering hydrocarbons from all three zones.

The well was successfully re-entered and reperforated on March 29th. The aim was to induce natural flow to surface at commercial rates. The well was tested at various choke sizes, but stabilised flow could not be established due to the waxy oil/condensate and tight formation.

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In total, 202 barrels of fluid was produced during the tests, with the highest recovery rate being 46 barrels on April 6th.

Discovery

Following completion of the test and evaluation of the results, PetroNeft said the well was “a condensate rich gas cap”.

PetroNeft chief executive David Stuart said the company was pleased with the discovery.

“Whilst we are disappointed that we did not flow hydrocarbons at commercial rates, we are pleased that we managed to establish that the J14 interval is a liquids-rich gas-filled reservoir.

“Initially we had planned to progress up the well to test the Upper Jurassic J1-1 and J1-3 intervals to establish commercial production before moving on to test the L-2 and L-2a well on the Ledovoye field.

“However, in light of the current economic situation, combined with the coronavirus shutdowns in Russia, we believe it is prudent to suspend operations for now.”

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson is an Irish Times reporter