Colombian Offshore projects get reactivated
According to El Heraldo, for the 2021 the oil exploration companies Petrobras and Noble Energy have scheduled the drilling of the Uchuva and the Cumbia well, both in the Colombian Caribbean. The investment for the drilling of both wells is about USD240 million.
It should be noted that the companies that reached these blocks are from major world players such as Exxon Mobil, Shell, Nobel Energy, Repsol, ONGC Videsh, Petrobras and Ecopetrol.
The Minister of Mines and Energy of Colombia, Diego Mesa Puyo, told El Heraldo that this is one of the great bets in terms of energy security in the country. He said that the city of Barranquilla can become an important center of the offshore industry, since it has been preparing for it for a long time.
“We had five years without signing a contract and we have already signed six offshore contracts, all on the Caribbean Coast with significant gas and oil potential,” he told to El Heraldo.
The National Hydrocarbons Agency of Colombia (ANH) reported that there are eight contracts in force for Exploration and Production (E&P) for offshore hydrocarbons in the country. Investment in the exploration stage is estimated at USD1.6 billion.
The entity affirms that the impact of the offshore reactivation in the Colombian Caribbean Coast will not only be seen in the economy and the opportunity in the development of the hydrocarbon potential. The contracts project investments in programs for the benefit of the communities corresponding to 1%, which would be USD16 million.
The Vice President of Exploration of the Colombian oil company Ecopetrol, Jorge Calvache, assured that the Caribbean Coast could also benefit from the purchases and contracting of goods and services, as well as the creation of new jobs that are generated with the activity. “It is very important that companies and workforce qualify for the development of offshore activities so that they can access these new opportunities.”
He also said that the company plans, in the next two years, to drill an exploratory well in the Tayrona block to test a compartment north of the Orca discovery and to be able to evaluate the commerciality of this project.
In the Southern Caribbean, with their partner Shell, they plan to drill a well to test the production capacity of the Gorgon discovery in deep waters. If successful, they will continue with a boundary well campaign to confirm the extent of the field and available resources.
The national oil company has a stake in six E&P blocks in the Colombian Caribbean, which are Fuerte Sur, Purple Angel, COL-5, Tayrona, GUA-OFF-10 and GUA-OFF1.
According to the ACP (Colombian Petroleum Association) between 2025 and 2030 it is projected that commercial development or exploitation will begin. This depends on the respective studies, the results of the explorations that have been and will be carried out in the coming years, as well as international prices and the type of hydrocarbon found (crude or gas).
“Offshore investments require very important investment portfolios, which is why market security is needed for the hydrocarbon to be traded, as well as a stable international reference price for such a level of investment,” said the association.
