BP plc BP recently announced that it has made two new oil and gas discoveries in the U.K. North Sea. The energy major named one discovery in Block 29/4e Capercaillie, which is located in the central North Sea. The other one, Achmelvich, is in Block 206/9b, west of Shetland.
About the Findings
The drilled depth of the Capercaillie well was 3,750 meters. It contains light oil and gas-condensate in its reservoirs of Cretaceous and Paleocene ages. At 2,395 meters depth, Achmelvich well contains oil in its reservoirs from the Mesozoic age.
Transocean Ltd.'s RIG harsh environment semi-submersible, Paul B Loyd Junior rig was used to drill both the wells in the summer of 2017. The findings will be added to the list of the company's major North Sea assets that include Quad 204, Clair Ridge, Culzean field, and others. The evaluation processes of the data, gathered from the new wells, are still on, which will help BP to consider future options. The size of the discoveries is yet to be disclosed.
Owners of the Discoveries
While BP is the full owner of Capercaillie, with 52.6% stake, it is the operator at the Achmelvich well. The other partners in the Achmelvich well are Royal Dutch Shell plc RDS.A and Chevron Corporation CVX with 28% and 19.4% stake, respectively.
Importance of the Findings
The new discoveries are expected to take the pressure off BP, especially after its failure to find success at Ravenspurn well in North Sea at the beginning of the year.
Moreover, it will support the company's plans to boost production in the North Sea – which has witnessed a gradual decline lately – beyond 2050. The company expects the new discovery will enable it to double production in the region to 200,000 barrels a day by 2020.
About BP
London-based BP is among the leading integrated energy players in the world. The firm has a portfolio of major upstream projects like Clair Ridge, Juniper and Mad Dog Phase 2 developments that are expected to fetch significant cash flows. The company anticipates the projects to add 800 Mboe/d to net production capacity by 2020, once they are online. It is to be noted that 90% of these upstream developments are either under construction or are completed.
BP, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), has gained 19% in the last year compared with 17.6% growth of its industry. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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