ITHACA Energy said yesterday it planned to drill a second production well on the Jacky field in the UK North Sea in the first quarter of next year to access additional reserves.
Daily production from the well is expected to initially exceed 5,000 barrels of oil per day when the well comes on stream in the following quarter.
The cost of the project is estimated at £24million.
Ithaca said production history and detailed sub-surface work had identified a currently unswept area within the field to the north of the existing production well.
Management believes this area could contain substantial incremental oil reserves.
The company said: “The Jacky field has produced strongly from one production well since April 2009 and has significantly exceeded production forecasts.
“Ithaca, as operator, has contracted the Energy Enhancer jack-up rig owned by Northern Offshore to drill a deviated well from the Jacky platform out to the target area.”
The well will be tied in to the existing Jacky production manifold for export via the Beatrice Alpha processing facility.
Chief development officer John Woods said: “The exceptional performance of the Jacky field implies that initial estimates of recoverable reserves have been exceeded.
“The northern area of the field was recognised from the outset to be poorly drained by the current production well.
“This new well is expected to target a substantial increment to reserves and, upon success, is anticipated to provide continued excellent performance from the field.”
Partners in the Jacky field are Ithaca (47.5%), Dyas UK (42.5%) and North Sea Energy (UK) (10%).