INEOS and Shell Partner in Gulf of Mexico
INEOS Energy and Shell Offshore Inc. will jointly invest in exploration and development opportunities in the Gulf of Mexico near existing Appomattox platform infrastructure. As part of the agreement, INEOS will acquire a 21% working interest.
The companies will work on three opportunities: Shell's pre-final investment decision Fort Sumter discovery, drilling of the Sisco exploration well, and a further exploration well targeted by the end of 2030.
“We are focusing on areas close to existing infrastructure where we can move quickly, control costs and unlock new production,” said INEOS CEO David Bucknall.
Weatherford Secures Two Offshore Contracts in Brazil
Weatherford has secured two offshore contracts from Constellation Oil Services in Brazil. The company will utilize Constellation’s ultradeepwater semisubmersible Gold Star to focus on Brazil’s Campos and Espírito Santo basins.
The first contract began in March and is expected to conclude in December 2028. The second contract will consist of new offshore drilling campaign in Brazil with a focus on the Búzios Field.
For this contract, Constellation’s ultradeepwater semisubmersible Brava Star will be utilized with the contract beginning in Q1 2027. The company anticipates the conclusion of the project in December 2030.
Eni Reports Positive Results in Indonesia
Eni’s Geliga‑1 discovery has been successfully tested. The company performed a drillstem test (DST), which confirmed strong reservoir productivity. The DST revealed the reservoir flowed at rates of up to 60 MMscf/D with limited pressure drawdown leading to the conclusion that the Geliga-1 well is estimated to produce approximately 200 MMscf/D of gas and about 10,000 BPD of condensate.
The well is located in the Ganal Block within the Kutei Basin, offshore Indonesia, about 70 km off the coast of East Kalimantan. It was drilled in water depths of 2,000 m and reached a total depth of about 5,100 m.
Located next to the undeveloped Gula gas discovery, early evaluations suggest that combining Geliga and Gula could produce approximately 1,000 MMscf/D of gas and 80,000 BPD of condensate.
Gelia-1 is operated by Eni with 82% interest, with Sinopec holding the remaining 18%.
OMV Begins Extraction in Austria
Three years after its discovery, OMV announced it has begun extracting gas from Austria’s Wittau well. In phase one of the Wittau project, approximately 1 billion m3 will be developed, enough to provide a reliable supply of gas for the winter of 2026/2027. Once fully developed, approximately 4.2 billion m3 is anticipated as potential recoverable resources. The company has invested more than $174 million in phase one.
“Wittau represents the successful startup of the largest gas discovery in Austria in the past 40 years,” said Chairman of the OMV Executive Board and CEO Alfred Stern.
Sinopec Receives Approval for Ziyang Dongfeng Field Exploration
Sinopec announced its Ziyang Dongfeng shale gas field secured official approval for proven geological reserves of nearly 236 billion m3 from the Ministry of Natural Resources of China. Located in the Sichuan Basin, Ziyang Dongfeng was discovered in the Cambrian Qiongzhusi Formation, the earth's oldest commercial shale layer, formed 540 million years ago, according to the company.
"After over a decade of persistent effort, we have taken Cambrian shale gas from zero to a hundred-billion-cubic-meter-scale reserve base. This validates the formation's vast potential and gives us a replicable technical pathway to expand China's shale gas development frontier," said Liu Wei, director of Sinopec Southwest Petroleum Bureau and representative of Sinopec Southwest Oil & Gas Company.
The company utilized artificial intelligence to scan subsurface formations for reservoir identification and gas detection.
Santos Proceeds With Agogo Production Project
Santos will proceed with the Agogo production facility tie-in project in Papua New Guinea. The company plans to deliver gas from the production facility to the PNG LNG gas pipeline through a new 19-km pipeline. Santos also plans to add two new wells and make changes to existing production infrastructure. First gas is anticipated from the project in Q2 2028.
“With an expected internal rate of return of greater than 50% and a payback period less than 4 years from final investment decision, and approximately 2 years from first gas, the project is expected to be strongly value accretive, support our long-term production profile, and sustain feed gas supply to PNG LNG,” said Santos Australia and PNG Chief Operating Officer Brett Darley.
ConocoPhillips Receives Approval for Norway Exploration
ConocoPhillips announced Norway's Ministry of Energy has approved the company’s plans to redevelop previously producing oil fields; the plan will be known as the Previously Produced Fields (PPF) project. The fields that are included are the Albuskjell, Vest Ekofisk, and Tommeliten Gamma, all located in the Greater Ekofisk Area. The company will utilize existing infrastructure to bring the fields onstream through a subsea development solution tied back to the Ekofisk Complex.
The PPF plan includes 11 new wells from four subsea templates, tied back via a shared pipeline. The company anticipates the project will deliver between 90 and 120 milion BOE in recoverable gas and condensate resources, with first production planned for Q4 2028.
ConocoPhillips is the operator of the Albuskjell and Vest Ekofisk fields with 35.1% interest, with partners Vår Energi (52.3%), Orlen Upstream Norway (7.6%), and Petoro AS (5%). ConocoPhillips is also the operator of the Tommeliten Gamma with 28.3% interest, with partners Vår Energi (9.1%) and Orlen Upstream Norway (62.6%).
Santos and Repsol Bring Pikka Onstream
Santos Ltd. and Repsol have brought the Pikka oil development onstream. Located in Alaska’s North Slope, the companies are targeting the Nanushuk Formation and anticipate Pikka will produce 80,000 B/D gross.
“Pikka phase 1 has initiated production as part of the startup and late-stage commissioning process that will lead to an initial ramp-up to 20,000 B/D (gross) over the next few weeks, while production is planned to be intermittent as key subsystems are progressively brought online. Production is then expected to be maintained at that level for about 1 month until water injection is established following the startup of the Seawater Treatment Plant,” Santos said in a company announcement.
Santos also announced that 28 development wells have been drilled, of which 21 have been stimulated and flowed back in line with pre-drill expectations.
Santos serves as operator with 51% interest, with partner Repsol holding the remaining 49%.
