Marathon Oil Corporation has announced that its subsidiary, Marathon International Petroleum Angola Block 31 Limited, has participated in the eighth deepwater discovery on Block 31 offshore Angola. This marks the eleventh discovery in Marathon's deepwater exploration program on Blocks 31 and 32 which began in 2001.
The results of the Astraea well, along with the three other discoveries (Ceres, Palas and Juno) previously made in the southeastern part of Block 31, reinforce the likelihood of a second development area on the block.
The Astraea-1 discovery well was drilled in the southeastern part of Block 31 approximately 60 kilometers (36 miles) southeast of the planned Northeast Development Area where four previous discoveries were made (Plutao, Saturno, Marte and Venus). The Astraea-1 well is located approximately 165 kilometers (103 miles) off the Angolan coast in 1,496 meters (4,908 feet) of water. The well was drilled to a total depth of 3,840 meters (12,598 feet) and tested at a maximum rate of 6,513 barrels of oil per day.
The concessionaire of Block 31 is Sonangol, Angola's state-owned oil company. Marathon holds a 10 percent interest in Block 31, along with the operator BP Exploration Angola with 26.67 percent, Sonangol, E.P. with 20 percent, Esso Exploration and Production Angola (Block 31) Limited with 25 percent, Statoil Angola A.S. with 13.33 percent and TEPA (Block 31) Ltd. (a member of the TOTAL group) with 5 percent.