Pancontinental Energy has applied to the Namibian government to extend its offshore Petroleum Exploration Licence 87 (PEL 87), proposing to drill a firm exploration well within two years and reprocess 4,200 square kilometres of seismic data in the Orange Basin.
The Australian-listed company said its wholly owned subsidiary, Pancontinental Orange, had submitted the application to the Ministry of Industries, Mines and Energy on behalf of the PEL 87 joint venture, seeking approval to enter the licence’s second renewal exploration period beginning on 23 January 2027.
The proposed work programme represents a significant step towards drilling on the 10,970-square-kilometre licence, which Pancontinental has held since 2018.
Under the application, the joint venture intends to reprocess approximately 4,200 square kilometres of existing three-dimensional seismic data and commit to drilling an exploration well during the proposed two-year renewal period.
However, the programme remains subject to approval by the Namibian government, with Pancontinental indicating that it will provide further information following discussions with the ministry and a decision by the minister.
The company is also continuing discussions with potential partners to support further exploration of PEL 87, although it has not announced a new farm-in agreement or disclosed the funding arrangements for the proposed well.
Alongside the renewal application, Pancontinental has awarded a contract to DUG Technology to undertake specialised reprocessing of existing seismic data covering the licence’s exploration prospects.
The initial project is intended to improve the quality of the seismic information used to assess potential hydrocarbon accumulations and determine suitable drilling locations.
According to Pancontinental, the work will concentrate on reducing high-energy seismic multiples, which can obscure geological features in subsurface imaging, and correcting amplitude attenuation affecting far-offset and ultra-far-offset data.
These improvements are particularly important for quantitative interpretation, which uses seismic measurements to investigate the physical properties of subsurface rocks and fluids.
Pancontinental selected DUG Technology after considering proposals from several seismic processing contractors, citing the company’s technical approach and the expected efficiency of its proposed work in terms of time and cost.
The initial reprocessing project is expected to be completed by the end of 2026, with the results informing a larger seismic reprocessing programme planned to begin in early 2027.
The broader programme is intended to improve the company’s understanding of the exploration prospects identified within PEL 87 ahead of any drilling campaign.
PEL 87 lies offshore southern Namibia in the Orange Basin, where several significant hydrocarbon discoveries have attracted international exploration interest.
The licence was awarded in early 2018 to a joint venture led by Pancontinental, initially providing for three exploration terms over eight years, with the possibility of subsequent extensions.
The licence arrangements also allow for conversion to a production licence under pre-agreed terms, should exploration eventually support commercial development.
Pancontinental Orange operates PEL 87 with a 75% participating interest, while Namibian company Custos Investments holds 15% and the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia, NAMCOR, holds the remaining 10%.
The proposed drilling commitment would mark an important change in the project’s exploration programme, moving beyond seismic evaluation towards testing the identified prospects with an exploration well.
Nevertheless, the company’s latest update does not identify a drilling contractor, specify the proposed well location or disclose the estimated cost of the drilling campaign.
It also does not confirm whether the well will be drilled in 2027 or 2028, beyond the commitment proposed for the two-year renewal period beginning in January 2027.
The immediate next steps are the ministry’s consideration of the renewal application, completion of the initial seismic reprocessing work and continued discussions with potential exploration partners.
The application is not yet an approved drilling programme, and the proposed well remains conditional on the licence renewal and subsequent operational arrangements.
