Genel Energy has announced an oil discovery from a side track of the original Ber Bahr 1 exploration well in the Kurdistan, on which it operates.
The discovery was also noted by Gulf Keystone. The two companies both hold a 40% working interest in the Ber Bahr block with the Kurdistan Regional Government holding the remaining 20% of the production sharing contract.
Dr John Hurst, head of Exploration of Genel Energy, said: “The Ber Bahr well adds a further commercial oil discovery to Genel’s already significant KRI resource base. We plan to begin a phased development of the field in the second half of this year.”
The Ber Bahr 1 well original TD was 3933m in the upper Permian Chia Zairi formation. It encountered good oil shows over a c.300m interval in the Jurassic. Two drill stem tests over this interval failed to flow. The original well has now been successfully side tracked and in several tests, conducted over a period of days, achieved a sustainable flow rate of 2100 STB/ day of 15 API oil from the Middle Jurassic age Sargelu Formation.
“This is another significant discovery and the fifth across the four blocks the Company has an interest in. It comes during an exciting year for the Company as we move towards becoming a significant producer in the region,” said John Gerstenlauer, Gulf Keystone’s chief operating officer.
