Page 33: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (Feb/Mar 2013)

32 34

Geology & Geophysics in the highly prospective deepwater pgs

Levantine basin. Egypt offered some previously relinquished, gas-prone acreage last year, although only four blocks were taken up. Political upheaval may have had something to do with the result. Currently Ganoup El Wadi

Petroleum has 20 blocks put out to international licensing some of which are in the Red Sea and the

Gulf of Suez.

African hotspots

Both sides of the African continent are now exploration hotspots.

The big surprise here is the emergence of gas prospects offshore

Mozambique and Tanzania with fnds by Anadarko, Eni, Statoil and

Ophir Energy/BG among others which complement the onshore boom initiated by the original fnds in Uganda and Tanzania by Tullow and Heritage Oil.

Off the west coast, Namibia may be emerging as a country of interest, certainly as far as PGS is concerned. company’s report, published in Last November, the company

January, warns that exploration and signed a 10-year multi-client survey production performance in 2012 deal with NAMCOR, the national was poor and may serve to dampen oil company, for the acquisition enthusiasm, but this is not refected of both 2D and 3D multi-client in the plans already announced by seismic. Operations are to begin seismic companies. with a large 2D regional survey over open deepwater blocks, which will

Mediterranean, Africa form the basis of a future licensing

One of the biggest surprises on the round. world E&P seismic activity map is Like most seismic companies PGS the growth of interest in the eastern has also been active offshore Angola

Mediterranean. which remains the single most This was frst sparked by the prospective area of West Africa. So

Leviathan gas discovery offshore has TGS, which has just begun an

Israel by Noble Energy, which extension to its 12,500 sq km

Woodside Petroleum has now 3D multi-client survey off Angola bought into with a 30% interest. which will cover 4064km over

Leviathan and associated fnds blocks 36 and 37. According to represent examples in recent TGS, pre-salt basins along Angola’s years where smaller independent conjugate margin pre-salt basins companies have led the way in are similar to the hydrocarbon-rich opening up new plays. This year basins offshore Brazil. The same will see the frst offshore licensing thinking has fuelled exploration round by Lebanon and the results of interest offshore countries such the second Cyprus licensing round, as Ghana, where last month Eni where Spectrum and PGS have been added to the country’s inventory of notably active in acquiring seismic signifcant hydrocarbon fnds with data to meet international interest the drilling of its frst appraisal well oedigital.com February 2013 | OE 35 oe_G&GFEBv2.indd 35 01/02/2013 10:52