The Kavango West 1X well, which spudded in late July, has already reached 1,900 metres and is drilling ahead safely.
Reconnaissance Energy Africa CEO Brian Reinsborough says the company expects to move into the main Otavi reservoir in October, with total depth planned by the end of November.
“The rig and the team in country are doing an excellent job at drilling. We expect to hit the next casing string within the next couple of weeks, around 2,400 metres. That’s the last casing string before we drill into the main objective, which is the Otavi reservoir,” Reinsborough told the Proactive Investors podcast.
He described the Otavi section as one of the thickest untested targets in Namibia, potentially 1,500 to 1,800 metres.
“It’s an incredibly thick section, all within a forward dip closure, so it’s a very prospective section to go through in October,” he noted.
The CEO framed the Damara Fold Belt as a new petroleum play with scale.
“This prospect in particular has a lot of size to it, and it’s going to tell us a lot about potential in this region. Our estimates through third-party auditors are around 340 million barrels of oil un-risked, and around 30 million risked. This is a game changer if it works. It has all the elements we like to see in the petroleum system. We think we have a great shot on goal, and if successful, it will really transform the company and the region of Namibia.”
On operations, Reinsborough explained that data is gathered through cuttings and logs at each casing stage, but stressed that results will only be disclosed once the well is finished.
“Operational updates, we really don’t like to disclose. It’s not industry protocol to disclose information as you drill, because we want to get to total depth, analyze everything, and have a high level of certainty before disclosing. That way we have a full picture of what we have.”
He added that industry interest is high. “There’s a lot of eyes on this well. We’re super excited. The industry is very excited as well. When you drill these play-opening wells, it gets a lot of attention. All eyes are on Recon right now.”
