Tullow Oil drilling finds empty well in Lokichar

A Tullow Oil drilling rig on site.

The latest well that Tullow Oil sunk in the Lokichar Basin has turned up dry, breaking a pattern of successful finds since December when the company resumed operations in the area after a lull following a dip in oil prices in 2015.

The firm said the Etiir-1 well, which it began drilling in June, did not encounter oil but added that it offered deeper understanding of the area.

“The Etiir-1 exploration well, which targeted a large, shallow, structural closure immediately to the west of the Greater Etom structure, spudded in late June and was unsuccessful with no material reservoir development or shows encountered,” said Tullow in its half-year update to shareholders yesterday.

“Although dry, this well has helped define the westerly extent of the Greater Etom Structure.”

The firm said it planned to drill three more wells in the course of this year. It has been focusing heavily on Kenya following the sale of the majority of its stake in Uganda to French oil giant Total last year.

“The focus of the East Africa team in the first half has been on Kenya. We have made good progress with our exploration and appraisal programme in Kenya, including new discoveries in Erut and Emekuyu,” said Executive Vice President for East Africa Mark Macfarlane.

Appraisal works

In addition to the exploration and appraisal works that it is currently undertaking, the firm is also gearing up to start exporting crude from Turkana on a pilot basis. The Early Oil Pilot Scheme was supposed to commence June but was suspended by the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum, which cited lack of an enabling legislation.

Tullow said it expected the pilot to start towards end of this year as well as preparations for full field development.