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West Africa Focus 145 millon years ago, creating the

South Atlantic Ocean.

The coastlines ft together like pieces of a puzzle and have similar oil-bearing geology, a key reason that the US Geological Survey estimates that sub-Saharan Africa contains more than 71 billion boe, much of it under waters off West

Africa.

Cameia is the hardest evidence yet of that potential.

“Cameia is truly the frst of its kind in West African deepwater pre-salt,” says Jim Farnsworth, chief exploration offcer at Cobalt

International Energy, adding that

The rifted margins of it “confrmed the presence of a

South America and world-class petroleum system and

Africa have similar oil highly productive reservoirs in the producing basins.

pre-salt.” what will be the best development Lots of work remains to make the plan. It’s pretty hard sometimes to pre-salt productive. Farnsworth say absolutely this is going to turn said that “2013 will be the year out to be the best approach,” says where we move beyond proof of

McLaughlin, now retired, who was concept wells that de-risked the a Kosmos senior vice president play, to testing multiple giant and was project director for the big structures within the core of this

Jubilee feld off Ghana. new province.”

A lot remains to be proved. Smaller discoveries in overlooked

Cobalt has great hopes for its parts of the post-salt also are pre-salt discovery, which has important. Developments with generated considerable excitement. acronyms for names – CLOV, PSVM,

Companies have firted with the TEN, which combine the frst letters pre-salt in the past. There’s even an of multiple felds – point the way to onshore pre-salt feld in production. more complete recovery using a hub

But there has been nothing of this and spoke system.

scale and development potential. Recent announcements ft that

Analysts say Cameia could pattern.

contain 1.7 billion barrels of oil In March, Italy’s Eni announced equivalent (boe). This is smaller its ninth post-salt discovery off than the 7.5-billion-bbl Tupi pre- the coast of Angola, Vandumbu. salt fnd off Brazil in 2006 but much The company described the fnd in larger than the biggest discoveries modest terms, but said it increases off West Africa. the resource base of its West Hub.

Parallel basins along the east In 2012, Hess had seven discov- coast of Brazil and the west coast of eries off Ghana. The company has

Africa developed after a split apart declined to discuss their size or oedigital.com April 2013 | OE 79 nichols_opener.indd 79 4/1/13 1:47 AM