Kuwait Energy
EL-12-211107
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conducted, this suggests some additional risk in the viability of the petroleum
system in this area. Six Prospects are defined in the sandstones and limestones
of the Abu Roash and Bahariya Formations, with deeper upside potential in the
AEB Formation attributed Lead status at two locations and a third location also
has a large, high risk Lead in the Jurassic Khatatba Formation.
Zone III lies in the same structural belt as Zone II, to the south of the main
productive trend, and shares the same intrinsic risks. Four Prospects and one
Lead are defined in the sandstones and limestones of the Abu Roash and
Bahariya Formations, with two further Leads in the AEB Formation.
Zone IV has been recently tested by the ASB-1X well, which targeted former
Prospect P-20/4-D, a small NW-SE trending Cretaceous fault block, before
deviating northward to intersect a large east-west trending fault block at Jurassic
level. This well proved dry and impacts on the petroleum system risk for the
Zone. All other potential is assigned Lead status only, mainly as a result of the
unproven hydrocarbon charge in this area; there are three Leads in the Abu
Roash, Bahariya and AEB Formations.
Zone V lies to the west of Zone IV in the same structural block, with the same
associated issues of hydrocarbon charge risk. One Prospect and three Leads
have been identified in the Abu Roash, Bahariya and AEB Formations. It is
planned to test the Prospect with the ASH-1X well. Prospectivity of this zone has
been reduced by the recent (2012) Salwa-1X well, which drilled to the Kharita
Formation but was dry.
Zone VI in the far southeast of the block lies in the area to be relinquished and is
therefore no longer of interest.
Zone VII is in the same structural zone as Zones IV and V and lies between the
Salwa-1X and Hawalli-1X wells, both of which were dry. It is viewed as a high risk
area with unproven hydrocarbon charge, although five Leads are defined in the
Abu Roash, Bahariya and AEB Formations, one of which also targets a large,
deep Jurassic structure.
Zone VIII lies to the north of the main productive trend, but the oil discovery in the
AR-E at Al Jahraa-1X shows the area to have significant potential. There are six
Prospects at Abu Roash Formation level, all of modest size, but one of these has
additional, larger targets in the shallower Khoman Formation limestone and the
deeper AEB and Jurassic Khatatba Formations. It is planned to test this Prospect
with the ASE-1X well.
Details of the exploration programme for the second and final license extension period (to
May, 2016) are currently under discussion. Although 20 Prospects have been identified,
it will clearly not be possible to test more than a fraction of these in the next two years.
