Sociedade Nacional de Combustí'edveis de Angola (Sonangol) and BP have announced the 'Juno-1' oil discovery in the ultra-deepwater Block 31, offshore Angola. Juno-1 is the seventh successful discovery well BP has drilled in Block 31 following Plutao, Saturno, Marte, Venus, Palas and Ceres. The well is located 10 kilometres to the north west of the recent Palas discovery and 22 kilometres south of the Ceres discovery announced earlier in 2005.
Juno-1 was drilled by the Jack Ryan drill ship in a water depth of 1,601 metres some 165 kilometres off the Angolan coast.
The well was drilled to a total depth of 3,200 meters and tested at a mechanically restricted rate of 2,676 barrels of oil per
day through a 28/64 inch choke.
BP is currently studying development concepts for the discoveries in the south-eastern region of the block.
Block 31 and its operatorship was awarded in 1999 by Angola's state oil company Sonangol to BP with a 26.67 per cent equity together with its partners Esso Exploration and Production Angola (Block 31) Limited 25 per cent, Sonangol, E.P. 20 per cent, Statoil Angola A.S.13.33 per cent, Marathon Petroleum Angola Block 31 Limited 10 per cent and TEPA (Block 31) Limited (Total group) 5 per cent
BP in Angola
BP's involvement with Angola goes back to the mid-1970s. During the 1990s, BP made very substantial investments in Angola's offshore oil and it is now an important part of the company's upstream portfolio. BP has interests in four blocks with operatorship of two.
BP also operates Block 18, which contains the Greater Plutonio fields, which are currently being developed. BP has 50 per cent equity in the block. Sonangol Sinopec International (SSI) also has 50 per cent.
BP's other interests in Angola are:
Block 15 operated by Esso (BP 26.67 per cent equity), which contains the Xikomba field, which came on stream in November 2003, and the Kizomba A and Kizomba B fields that are now being developed.
Block 17 operated by Total (BP 16.67 per cent equity), which contains the Girassol field, which came on stream in December 2001 and the Dalia field, which was approved for development by Sonangol in May 2003.
