The Covid-19 pandemic has forced Mozambique’s
National Hydrocarbon Company (ENH) to interrupt the exploratory opening of
wells, looking for oil and natural gas in Buzi district, in the central
province of Sofala. After initial attempts in the 1960s, the search for
hydrocarbons in Buzi resumed early this year. The operators in Buzi are ENH and
Buzi Hydrocarbons PTE Ltd, a subsidiary of the Indonesian company Energi Mega
Persada. An exploratory well, known as BS-2, was drilled in Buzi in May. However,
the spread of Covid-19 has led ENH and its Indonesian partner to inform the
regulator, the National Petroleum Institute (INP) that it is interrupting
operations.
A note on the INP website says “This is a
complex activity, undertaken by a considerable number of workers, including
expatriates. Since it is obligatory to comply with the procedures laid down by
the government concerning people and goods entering and leaving Mozambican territory,
the companies could not proceed with the due rotation of staff”. So operations
at BS2 have been cut back to maintaining the drilling platform. The well has
already reached the depth of 836 metres (out of a planned 1,548 metres). It is
the second well drilled recently in Buzi. The first, BS1, is about a kilometre
away and reached a depth of 1,567 metres on 10 March. During the drilling the
occurrence of natural gas was noted, but tests will be required to determine
whether this is a commercially viable discovery. Each of the two Buzi wells is
budgeted at 15.2 million US dollars.
“It is expected that, as soon as the state of
emergency is lifted, and the conditions for movement are normalised, the BS1
and BS2 wells will be completed and duly tested to verify the flow and amount
of natural gas”, said the INP. A concession agreement was signed with Buzi
Hydrocarbons in 2010, envisaging the drilling of two wells in the second and
third periods of exploration. The first research period was devoted to analysing
seismic data, some of which dated back to the initial exploration attempts of
the 1960s. 300 kilometres of pre-existing 2D seismic data was reprocessed, and
1,650 kilometres of data was reinterpreted. Buzi Hydrocarbons acquired,
processed and interpreted 600 kilometres of new seismic 2D data.
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