Cameroon: Oil and Gas Exploration in 2011 and 2012

Cameroon is a country on the West Coast of Africa.  It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon has relatively modest oil and gas reserves, although it accounts for about half of the country’s exports. Oil production has also been declining in recent years due to maturing of existing fields. Here is a list of operators with plans to drill exploration wells in the near future. Also listed are operators that had plans to drill in the next 2 years, but who have since not made any announcements.  Information has been sourced from Derrick Petroleum's exploration and deals databases.

Block	Operator	Wells planned in 2011	Wells planned in 2012+
Bomono	Bowleven plc		2
Kombe-N’sepe	Perenco
Ndian River	Kosmos Energy (Africa)
MHLP-5	Bowleven plc
Tilapia	Noble Energy Inc	1

 Exploratory wells planned to be drilled/being drilled in Cameroon in 2011 and 2012. Source: Derrick Petroleum Planned Wells Exploration Database. The number of columns has been minimized to fit the table on the page. The actual database has many more parameters listed and recorded. 

1.             Bomono: The Bomono permit is located onshore Cameroon near Mt. Cameroon. It consists of 2 parts, OLHP 1 and 2, covering an area of 2328 sq kms. In February 2009 work commenced on the airborne gravity and magnetic survey. A 500 km 2D seismic survey was obtained by Jan 2011. Bowleven is planning to drill upto two wells on the permit in H1 2012. Bowleven has a 100% interest in the permit.

Map of Bowleven’s permits in Cameroon. Source: Bowleven.

2.             MLHP-5, MLHP-6 and MLHP-7: Bowleven operates these three shallow blocks in the Etinde Permit area with a 75% interest. The Blocks are located across the Rio del Rey basin (part of the southern margin of the Niger Delta oilfield basin) and the Douala Basin (which contains large undrilled seismically identified structures), together referred to as the Etinde Permit. The Etinde Permit covers approximately 2,314 km2. The water depths are shallow, from the shoreline up to approximately 70 meters maximum depth.

The Company drilled a high impact exploration well Sapele-1 on MLHP-5 on September 14, 2010. The well was to target a series of stacked reservior objectives, from the proven Miocene fairway down to the deeper Cretaceous fairway. The Sapele-1 well encountered a significant layer of hydrocarbons. Wireline log evaluation indicated all of the five objectives to be hydrocarbon-bearing with net pay confirmed in three, based on fluid samples. Bowleven has a 75% interest while Vitol E&P has 25% interest.

3.             Kombe-N’sepe: Kombe-N’sepe Block has an area of 3026 sq kms. The Kombe-N’sepe Block is located at the northern end of the late Cretaceous turbidite play fairway that extends from northern Gabon through Equatorial Guinea into southern Cameroon. More than two billion barrels of oil have been discovered in the region. Operators have made several small oil and gas discoveries in and around the Kombe-N’sepe Block. A two-well exploration campaign was planned to begin in either 2009 or early 2010. However, pending further announcements by the consortium, it is unlikely that an exploration well will be drilled in 2011. Perenco (40%) operates the block and the partners are Kosmos Energy (35%) and Société Nationale des Hydrocarbures (25%)

Source: Kosmos Energy

4.             Ndian River: Ndian River Block is located in Coastal strip of Rio del Rey Basin bordering Gulf of Guinea and abutting Cameroon/Nigeria border (predominantly onshore). Société Nationale des Hydrocarbures will be carried through exploration and appraisal phases and has an option to back in to the project with an interest of up to 15% upon approval of a development plan. Kosmos initially is focusing on the Ndian River Block’s under-explored northern extension of the late Cretaceous/lower Tertiary turbidite play. Since 2007 exploration activities have included a gravimetric and magnetic survey of the block, field studies, reprocessing of existing data and a 2D survey over an area with the highest potential. It is unlikely a well will be drilled in 2011, as the partners are not talking about it so far.

 5.             Tilapia: Tilapia block is located in the Douala/Kribi-Campo basin offshore Cameroon and covers a total area of 3,874.9 sq km. A 3D seismic survey was acquired in 2010 and an exploration drilling program was to commence in 2011. However, pending further company announcements, it is likely that exploratory drilling will only occur in 2012. Noble Energy (50% interest) is the operator along with partner Petronas (50% interest). 

Source: Noble Energy

For more information of discoveries and exploration plans for the following West African countries, click on the following links. Cote D’ivoire; Ghana discoveries; Ghana Exploration in 2011, Exploration in Mauritania, Benin & Togo; Angola; Sierra Leone; Sengal; Liberia; List of West African discoveries in 2010 – 2011.

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Oil exploration in Sierra Leone in 2011..Maybe a new frontier

          Oil and gas exploration has had a very short history in Sierra Leone. Although some seismic and G&G studies were carried out in in the past, there was not much potential seen for oil and gas deposits. All this changed with Anadarko’s Venus discovery in the deep waters offshore Sierra Leone in August 2009. Although this discovery was relatively thin (50 ft of net hydrocarbon pay), in water depth of 1800m, the discovery generated a lot of interest and opened up the potential for a multi-billion barrel oil frontier in West Africa. Linking the Venus discovery to the previous Jubilee find in Ghana which was discovered by Anadarko’s partner in that block, Kosmos Energy, gives a new interpretation of the petroleum geology in the region. The new Transform Margin (a place where 2 tectonic plates slide past each other) play was generating a lot of interest as it could potentially lead to a string of discoveries along its length. Although Venus was a significant discovery, it has still not been deemed to be commercial.

Figure 2: Map  showing the location of the Venus and Mercury discoveries. Blocks SL-06 and SL-07 have now been merged and are now together called Block SL-07B-10. Source: Anadarko

On the 15^th of November 2010, Anadarko announced that it had struck oil with its Mercury-1 well which encountered approx. 135 net feet of oil pay in two Cretaceous-age fan systems. The well was drilled to a total depth of approx. 15,950 feet in about 5,250 feet of water. In the primary objective, the Mercury well encountered approx. 114 net feet of light sweet crude oil with a gravity of between 34 and 42 degrees API, with no water contact. An additional 21 net feet of 24-degree API crude was encountered in a shallower secondary objective. This discovery is almost certain to be declared commercial, although it has not yet been announced. Both, Venus and Mercury, discoveries were in Block SL-07B-10. A third exploration well on the Jupiter prospect is planned to be drilled in Q4, 2011. Anadarko (55%) operates the block and the partners are Repsol YPF (25%), Tullow Oil (10%) and Mitsubishi (10%).

African Petroleum Corporation Ltd., has a 100% interest in Block SL-03. The block covers an area of 3,135 km and is located ~ 150 km from the Mercury-1 discovery and 85 km from the Venus discovery. The company is planning an extensive 3D seismic survey over the block in 2011 to firm up exploration prospects. It is understood that drilling would occur in 2012, after processing and interpretation of the seismic data. 

                              

Background
Sierra Leone has had a long history of strife, turmoil and civil war. It is bordered by Guinea to the east Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic ocean to the west. After more than a century of colonial rule, the country gained independence in 1961. Its history since independence has been marked by widespread corruption and economic, social and educational deterioration. It culminated with the beginning of a 10 year long civil war in 1991 that is estimated to have cost the lives of 50,000 people, besides displacing 2 million more and causing  civilian populations to endure violence at the hands of opposing factions. In 2001, with the help of United Nations forces, rebel forces of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) were disarmed, and president Kabbah was re-elected to power, and he declared the civil war officially over. The current president is Ernest Bai Karoma, who was elected in the 2007 elections for a period of 5 years.

Figure 1: Map showing location of Sierra Leone (Red Polygon)

Economy
Sierra Leone is an extremely poor country and ranks 163 in its GDP compared to other countries in the world. 70% of the population is estimated to be below the poverty line (CIA). According to the CIA world factbook, its GDP in 2010 was $4.72 billion, a marginal increase from $4.498 billion in 2009 and $4.358billion in 2008. The biggest threat to its economic development is disruption of domestic peace and isolation from foreign aid. Economic and social infrastructure development has been severely stymied due to the long history of civilian unrest. However, relative peace since the end of the civil war in 2002, has offered the promise for economic rejuvenation and development of the country. GDP growth rate since 2002 has been between 4% and 7%. The country is endowed with rich mineral resources and the economy is overly dependant on mineral exploitation. Although agriculture employs most of the population, it accounts for only 42% of national income. The mineral extraction and exploitation industry generates most of the income although it has been managed poorly, with most of the income escaping formal channels, and used to fund rebel activities in the region. Diamond exports account for almost half of Sierra Leone’s exports, and remains the biggest source of earnings. A number of significant offshore oil discoveries in 2009 and 2010, could herald a new period of growth, although development of these reserves is still many years away.

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West Africa's Ghana emerging from the dust! Oil discoveries in Ghana so far..

Ghana is emerging from decades of unsuccessful oil and gas exploration to becoming one of the global exploration hotspots. Despite a few discoveries prior to 2007, there wasn’t much to talk about. However, the game changer turned out to be the billion barrel Jubilee oil field discovery in 2007 by Kosmos Energy, drilled by the Mahogany-1 well. This, as it turned out, was also extremely fortuitous because Kosmos was drilling a stratigraphic trap (more subtle to map) and not the easily identifiable structural traps. Locating and mapping these stratigraphic traps can potentially lead to world class discoveries, as the Jubilee discovery has shown, and as the other companies are also now doing. With exploratory success coming in Ghana, and subsequently along the West African coast, increasing attention is being focussed in this region, and it is becoming increasingly likely that huge reserves of hydrocarbons lie under the offshore. Ghana has led the way so far, and I have listed out all the oil and gas discoveries in Ghana to date. This list is sure to grow as more exploration picks up in this country. For a list of oil companies with plans to drill in West Africa click here. For a list of recent discoveries and companies planning to drill in Ghana click here. For a discussion on Angola’s oil industry and companies planning to drill in Angola click here. For a list of discoveries in Cote D'Ivoire and exploration plans in 2011 - 2012 click here. All data is from Derrick Petroleum’s extensive exploration and deals databases and Derrick Petroleum analysts.

List of Discoveries in Ghana upto 2011

Source: Derrick Petroleum

The following maps show the location of these discoveries

Source: Kosmos

Source: Tullow

Source: Kosmos

NOTE: On 6 June, 2011, Kosmos Energy announced that the Banda-1 probe, drilled to a total depth of 4580 metres on the Banda Deep prospect by Atwood Oceanics’ semi-submersible Atwood Hunter, found hydrocarbons over a gross interval of 300 metres in Cenomanian-aged reservoirs. The interval contained more than 100 metres of low-porosity sandstone and three metres of 40 degrees-API oil pay. On completion, the well will be suspended and the rig moved to complete drilling of the Makore-1 well, which is targeting Turonian age reservoirs in the south of the licence. The well was drilled in the West Cape Three Points Block. Kosmos (30.875%) is operator and partners are Anadarko (30.875%), Tullow (22.896%), EO Group (3.5%), Sabre Oil and Gas (1.854%) and GNPC (10% carried interest).