Canada's Monumental Plans to Drill New Zealand Oil and Gas Exploration Well in 2027

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 14, Canadian energy exploration company Monumental Energy announced plans to join forces with Jetex Energy, New Zealand Energy Corp., and 3TCF Limited to participate in the onshore Maata oil and gas exploration project in the Taranaki Basin, New Zealand, with plans to drill the Maata-1 well in the first quarter of 2027. The target is located within the PEP 60742 petroleum exploration permit area. The company's preliminary assessment indicates that the Mount Messenger sandstone formation has an oil resource potential exceeding 10 million barrels. The drilling operation remains subject to the signing of joint venture and operating agreements and relevant government approvals.

The Maata exploration target is located in the onshore developed oil and gas area of the Taranaki Basin, with the Mount Messenger Formation sandstone reservoir as the primary exploration objective. Monumental Energy ranks it as the largest exploration structure among the identified similar sandstone targets in the area. The company plans to first evaluate the oil and associated natural gas resources of this formation through the Maata-1 well, and after completing relevant testing, assess other potential hydrocarbon-bearing intervals.

The Maata-1 wellsite has been secured, and drilling materials such as casing and wellheads are being prepared. The relevant drilling regulatory permits have been obtained. Jetex Energy is proposed to serve as the project operator, and the four participating companies will further determine their respective equity interests, capital contributions, and specific operational arrangements. The New Zealand Petroleum and Minerals authority still needs to review and approve the updated work permit arrangement submitted by Jetex Energy.

The Waihapa Production Station and associated oil and gas transmission pipelines are already in place near the project. According to the development plan published by Monumental Energy, if the exploration well discovers oil and gas with commercial development conditions, subsequent production could be considered for connection to this processing station and transported to market through existing oil and gas pipelines.

The Copper Moki oilfield near Maata has cumulative oil production exceeding 1 million barrels, and the adjacent Cheal oilfield has cumulative oil production exceeding 15 million barrels. The nearby Arakamu-2 well has untested oil-bearing intervals. Three old wells in the Waihapa/Ngaere area have all achieved oil flow test results through reperforation operations, with some wells reaching initial test daily production of several hundred barrels. The Maata target itself has not yet been drilled, and its resource scale and reservoir productivity need to be confirmed through the planned exploration well.