NEWLY completed ultra-deepwater drillship Petrobras 10000 has started work in Angola for Petrobras under a 10-year contract. The vessel is to drill a series of exploration wells – rumoured to be up to nine at present – in Angola’s deepwater blocks 16 and 18/6 in the Benguela sub-basin of the Kwanza Basin, an area that has so far not been tested with the drillbit. Miocene and Oligocene sands are the main targets as they display seismic anomalies that are thought to be large turbidite plays.
Petrobras is the operator of both blocks with 30% interest in block 26 and 80% interest in block 18/6, in association with Sociedade Nacional de Combustiveis de Angola (Sonangol), the national oil company of Angola.
Petrobras 10000 is managed by Transocean which, under an agreement with the Petrobras and Mitsui joint venture, P&M Drilling International, will acquire the rig with a 20-year capital lease contract.