SDX Adds Gas Acreage in Morocco
UK-based North Africa explorer SDX Energy said June 1 it has been awarded the 1,362 km² Gharb Centre exploration permit onshore northern Morocco for an eight-year period and has given a firm commitment to acquire 200km² of 3-D seismic and drill two exploration wells within the first four-year period.
State producer ONHYM says that production in the Gharb basin, near Tangier in northern Morocco, is generally dry gas with 99% methane content.
SDX already has a 75% producing interest in the Sebou concession situated in the Gharb basin; its net production in Morocco was just 663 barrels of oil equivalent/day, as at March 23 2017, compared with 3,570 boe/d in Egypt.
SDX said work planned at Gharb Centre complements the work programmes at its nearby Sebou and Lalla Mimouna acreage where development and exploration wells are planned for H2 2017 as already announced. SDX has received partner approval for seven drilling locations in these permits and is targeting a late 3Q 2017 start.
SDX CEO Paul Welch said: “With our partner ONHYM, SDX now has a dominant commercial and technical position across the basin and we look forward to capitalising on the opportunities to grow our reserve and production base in Morocco. Our target is to fulfil the pipeline capacity coming out of the basin, which would entail the quadrupling of production from our current levels.”
Mark Smedley