Reconnaissance Energy Africa Ltd. has reached a critical milestone at its Kavango West 1X exploration well in Namibia, with drilling now advancing into the primary Otavi carbonate reservoir target. The company successfully set its final casing string at approximately 2,300 meters depth, positioning the well just above the targeted reservoir zone in the Damara Fold Belt.
President and CEO Brian Reinsborough expressed confidence in the operation’s progress, stating that drilling is proceeding on schedule thanks to the operations team’s safe and efficient execution of the drilling plan. The well is testing what appears to be a substantial structural closure in the Otavi section, measuring roughly 20 kilometers long by 3 kilometers wide.
The company expects to reach total depth of approximately 3,800 meters in the second half of November, after penetrating around 1,500 meters of potential reservoir. Once at total depth, an extensive logging program will commence, with results anticipated to be made public around year-end.
ReconAfrica has placed the project under “tight hole” status, meaning no intermediate well results will be disclosed prior to logging completion. The company emphasized that this strict adherence to tight hole protocol should not be interpreted as either negative or positive. Future updates before logging completion will be limited to drilling depth progress only.
Earlier drilling operations in the shallower section of the well advanced ahead of schedule, which resulted in a several-week deferral as the company awaited delivery of casing strings for the final well section. Operations have since resumed and remain on the original expected schedule.
Sources: worldoil.com, energy-pedia.com, globenewswire.com