7324/2-1

General

Well 7324/2-1 was drilled to test the Apollo prospect on the western flank of the Hoop Graben in the Barents Sea. The primary objective was to prove an economic volume of hydrocarbons in the Stø, Nordmela, Tubåen and Fruholmen formations in the Early-Middle Jurassic.

Operations and results

Wildcat well 7324/2-1 was spudded with the semi-submersible installation Transocean Spitsbergen on 1 June 2014 and drilled to TD at 1090 m in the Late Triassic Snadd Formation. A pilot well was drilled to a depth of 640 m to look for shallow gas. No shallow gas was encountered in the pilot hole. No significant problem was encountered in the operations. Drilling of the top hole down to the reservoir section was very fast, too fast for the well site geologist and mud logger to get good cuttings samples and look for shows in sandstone stringers. The well was drilled with seawater and hi-vis sweeps down to 639 m, with KCl/Polymer/Glycol mud from 639 m to 791 m, and with Low Sulphate/KCl/Polymer/Glycol mud from 791 m to TD.

Top of the Jurassic Stø Formation was penetrated at 849 m, with sandstones from 857 m to top of the Late Triassic Fruholmen Formation at 871 m. These sandstones had moderate reservoir quality. Unfortunately, they were water wet. The Nordmela and Tubåen formations were not present in the well. The only hydrocarbon indications in the well were oil shows, described in the sidewall cores from the Snadd Formation between 893 m and 929 m.

No cores were cut. MDT water samples were taken at 857.7 m.

The well was permanently abandoned on 18 June 2014 as a dry well.

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