ReconAfrica to Spud 1,000-Meter Horizontal Well in Namibia in October

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 28, ReconAfrica resumed operations at the Kavango West 1X (KW1X) discovery well in Namibia's PEL 73 block. The Jarvie-1 rig has restarted and begun wellbore preparation for a horizontal sidetrack into the Huttenberg Formation and subsequent flow testing. The company plans to commence horizontal drilling in October after obtaining regulatory approval and completing the arrival of remaining equipment on site. The horizontal section is designed to extend up to approximately 1,000 meters, with drilling operations expected to last about one month.

This operation represents the next appraisal milestone following the KW1X vertical production test. After analyzing samples from vertical tests of the Huttenberg and Elandshoek formations, ReconAfrica confirmed that the produced natural gas is thermogenic, with maturity in the late oil window to early gas window, indicating potential for liquid hydrocarbon generation. The upcoming horizontal well test will focus on measuring sustained wellbore productivity, liquid yield in the gas stream, and formation pressure response, while further samples will be collected to determine liquid composition.

Rig maintenance has been completed at the site, required equipment has been procured, with some equipment having arrived at the wellsite and the remainder in transit. Wellbore preparation begins with the removal of existing casing, followed by the planned installation of a whipstock at approximately 2,500 meters depth to drill the horizontal section out from the original vertical wellbore. The horizontal well will be completed open-hole without casing or cement, with the design objective of intersecting as many natural fractures and identified porous zones within the Kavango structure as possible. Flow testing will be conducted immediately after completion of the horizontal section, with initial test data obtained prior to acid washing operations.

ReconAfrica has raised dedicated funding for this horizontal sidetrack program. On September 10, the company completed an underwritten public offering totaling approximately CAD 21.85 million, with proceeds primarily intended for the KW1X Huttenberg Formation horizontal sidetrack and production test. Company management has identified measurable flow rates and determination of liquid hydrocarbon content as key technical data for advancing the Kavango discovery toward a final investment decision evaluation, and plans to use the results of this test to evaluate the 22 structural targets already delineated within the PEL 73 block.

KW1X has undergone multiple appraisal phases this year. In June, ReconAfrica began production testing of six target intervals in the Huttenberg and Elandshoek formations; in July, the Elandshoek Formation test yielded gas and liquid shows; after completing the vertical test in August, the Huttenberg Formation also confirmed hydrocarbons flowing to surface, prompting the company to decide to transition to horizontal open-hole testing. ReconAfrica holds a 70% interest in and serves as operator of the PEL 73 block, with BW Energy holding 20% and Namibia's national oil company NAMCOR holding 10%.

During the same period, ReconAfrica has also advanced exploration work in Angola and Gabon. From May to June this year, the company conducted soil sampling in the adjacent MOU block in Angola. Preliminary results indicate the presence of a thermogenic petroleum system with liquid hydrocarbon potential, with surface microseepage data pointing to deep hydrocarbon migration; the next phase considers acquiring 2D seismic data in 2027. In Gabon, 3D seismic data from the Ngulu offshore block is being reprocessed using full waveform inversion technology, with completion planned by year-end. Concurrently, a resource report is being prepared and appraisal well locations for the Loba oil discovery are being screened, with related drilling planning already underway.