FIONA REDDAN

Tullow Oil has discovered high quality oil in the Ngamia-2 well in Kenya, whcih it has been drilling with its partners on the project, Africa Oil.

The well encountered up to 39 meters of net oil pay and 11 meters of net gas pay and appears to have identified a new fault block trap north of the main Ngamia accumulation. The reservoirs were high quality, Tullow Oil said, with more than 200 meters of net reservoir sands with good permeability inferred from MDT sampling. The well has been suspended for testing and the rig will continue to drill up to four additional appraisal wells in the Ngamia field area for an extended well test program.

Angus McCoss, exploration director with Tullow Oil said that the success of the well builds on its major basin opening discovery well, Ngamia-1.

“The reservoirs were of similar quality and the well will be suspended for testing. The Agete -1 well test flowed at 500 bopd and the partnership continue to evaluate this discovery. With five rigs drilling in Kenya and Ethiopia, there is much to look forward to in the second half of the year,” he said.

Meanwhile Justin Loasby, chairman of Kenmare Resources, announced this morning that he is to retire from the board of the resource group due to ill health, with immediate effect.

Steven McTiernan, a non-executive director of Kenmare with over forty years of diverse natural resources industry and investment banking experience, will take on the role of non-executive chairman in replacement of Mr Loasby.