Tullow upbeat despite non-commercial find offshore Gabon

Oil and gas group Tullow Oil has reported that the Sputnik-1 well on its part-owned Arouwe block offshore Gabon has found "non-commercial" hydrocarbons.

Tullow's partner and operator of the block Perenco said that while the Vantage Tungsten Explorer rig will now leave the block, the "results of this well will be incorporated into wider understanding of the region".

Sputnik-1 was targeting a pre-salt structure at the field but "encountered non commercial hydrocarbon pay in up to 300 metres of net sandstone reservoir", Perenco said.

The drill ship drilled the well to a final depth of 4,686 metres in water depths of 1,203 metres.

"This is an encouraging result from the pre-salt play, offshore Gabon," said Tullow's exploration director Angus McCoss.

"Having found a petroleum system, we will now take the data from this well and integrate it with our seismic data to discuss with partners our next steps for the licence."

Tullow owns a 35% interest in Arouwe, along with partners Perenco (35%) and Exxonmobil (30%).