Eni has encountered oil with its Baleine East 1X well, the first exploration well in block CI-802 and second discovery on the Baleine structure offshore Côte d’Ivoire. The results have prompted a 25% increase in the oil and gas volumes in place, which are now estimated at 2.5 billion bbl of oil and 3.3 Tcf of associated gas.
The well was drilled in the block operated by Eni (90%), together with its partner Petroci Holding (10%), using the drillship Saipem 12000. The final depth reached was 3165 m measured depth, in a water depth of about 1150 m. Baleine East 1X is located about 5 km east of the Baleine 1X discovery well in the adjacent block CI-101 and represents the first commercial discovery in the CI‑802 block, confirming the extension of the Baleine field.
The well confirmed the presence of a continuous oil column of about 48 m in reservoir rocks with good properties. From the vertical borehole, a horizontal drain of 850 m in length was subsequently drilled into the reservoir to perform a production test that confirmed potential production of at least 12,000 BOPD from the Baleine East 1X well.