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88E to drill Merlin 2 well Drilling will be to the east; Merlin 1 tests suggest better reservoir thickness there Kay Cashman Petroleum News
88 Energy said Aug. 16 that although it reserves the right to re-enter the Merlin 1 exploration well in the future, next year in first quarter it will drill Merlin 2, an appraisal well to the east and closer to the shelf break where the company expects “enhanced reservoir thickness and quality.”
88 Energy also said its post well evaluation of Merlin 1, which was drilled in March to a depth of 5,267 feet, has successfully demonstrated the presence of oil in multiple stacked sequences in the Cretaceous Nanushuk formation (N20 and N18 targets). An additional new target, the N19 sand, that was not previously mapped, also returned a strong hydrocarbon signature following geochemical analysis.
Analysis indicates 41 feet of net log pay across the three reservoir intervals, which are in the Nanushuk Grandstand sands.
These sands, 88 Energy said, show close correlation to the Lower Grandstand sands seen in 88 Energy’s nearby Umiat field and petrophysical analysis has returned 138 feet of possible net pay.
In addition, 88 Energy said geochemical analysis of the cores from Merlin 1 established the “presence of a light oil with an estimated API gravity between mid-30 to low-40 API.”
1.6 billion barrels Incorporating Merlin1 results into Project Peregrine’s dataset, 88 Energy revised Peregrine’s mean total prospective resource to an estimated 1.6 billion barrels. (An independent oil and gas reservoir evaluation consultancy, ERCE Australia Pty Ltd conducted the updated assessment of the Project Peregrine.)
The objective of Merlin 1 was to assess three independent Nanushuk reservoir targets - N14, N20, and N18 - identified from reprocessed seismic data. All targets came in considerably deeper than expected.
Post well analysis indicated that the N14 horizon, the primary target of Merlin 1, was not intersected, as it was believed to lie about 600 feet deeper than the well’s total depth.
The company said N14 remains a target of interest.
Merlin 1 was drilled by one of 88 Energy’s four Alaska operating subsidiaries, Emerald House - all the subsidiaries are run by long-time Alaska geologist and innovator Erik Opstad.
Opstad used All-American Rig 111, a lightweight, inexpensive portable rig that did not require an ice road.
Project Peregrine is in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska.
Merlin 2 pre-planning With Merlin 1, the company was looking at proving up a gross mean prospective resource of 645 million barrels of oil. With Merlin 2, 88 Energy is targeting a net entitlement mean prospective resource of 652 million barrels (unrisked).
Three potential locations have been selected for Merlin 2 and will be permitted, 88 Energy said, with pre-planning and rig selection beginning immediately.
Merlin 2 is designed to target the thicker zones of reservoir intervals.
A potential infill 2D seismic program, consisting of 343 line miles, has been designed and costed, the company said.
88 Energy Managing Director Ashley Gilbert was quoted in the Aug. 16 report as saying: “We are thrilled with the results from the Merlin 1 exploration well. This is the best well we’ve drilled on the North Slope of Alaska to date, with light oil detected in the Nanushuk across three separate horizons. Whilst we have a lot more work to do, the Merlin 1 well has confirmed an active petroleum system in the Peregrine acreage”
“Results of this significance, together with the magnitude of the opportunity, merit a pace of evaluation that facilitates further drilling and seismic in upcoming winter seasons,” he added.
88 Energy holds a 100% interest in the Peregrine Project, which includes several prospects, including Merlin and Harrier.
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