Oil discovery offshore Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Moke East well, located between the Lukami and Motoba fields in the coastal basin of the DRC, has discovered a 24ft net oil bearing formation. Encouraged by these initial results, MIOC is undertaking development drilling activities offshore the DRC.The Nuada rig has now commenced drilling the first of 12 wells in the GCO field in a programme that is expected to last 12 months. This development work is being carried out in parallel with the operations of the CS02 workover unit at the same location.

 

However, the second exploration well, the LUKS-A well, targeted the southern extension of the Pindar formation, which was found to have insufficient hydrocarbon potential and was plugged and abandoned.Frédéric Kiepferle, General Manager of Perenco DRC, was optimistic about the initial discovery at the Mokdong well and emphasised Perenco's commitment to discovering new resources in the DRC.

 

The discovery follows Perenco's recent acquisition of stakes in several non-core oil licences from Eni Group (Eni) for $300 million, strengthening its presence in the region. In addition, TotalEnergies recently expanded its presence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo by acquiring an additional 10 per cent interest in the Moho offshore field from Trident Energy.