DESIRE petroleum gets going at long last !

finished reading interesting article in Nov 2006 edition of Offshore. article is written by their European Editor J. Beckman, this is an extract i/p and includes a number of interesting comments by FOGL Chief Ex. Tim Bushell-

" For me , one way of getting hold of a rig in this area is to put together a program attractive to a drilling company. Contractors are unlikely to be interested in just two or three wells in the South Atlantic." However a lengthier contract spread over a year or more would bring benefits both to the drilling contractor and to the various Falklands licence joint venture groups, which would share mobilization and logistics costs. Bushell sees possibilities for up to 10 to 12 wells, split between the different Falkland operators. Each well should take typically 30-35 days to drill, he believes. " In our case, the leads and prospects are not deep lying, making it relatively easy to drill wells quite quickly." He estimates $30 million/well with a futher $20-$30 million for mobilizing a rig out of, for instance , West Africa. " We would need a 2nd or 3rd generation semi, modified to work in up to 1,500m water depth. In the North, though, the targets are in shallower water. While the weather is not overfriendly , it is no worse than what you would encounter West of Shetland or in the Norwegian North Sea." As for logistic support, "there is a perfectly good harbour in the capital, Port Stanley, which accomodated two anchorhandlers and all other logistical requirements for the first drilling campaign."................