Valeura Energy has announced an oil discovery at the newly named Suraphi field, located in Block G1/48 in the Gulf of Thailand. The discovery was made by drilling the Manora-9 open-water exploration well and its associated sidetracks, positioned approximately 4.5 km northeast of the existing Manora A platform.
Drilling operations targeted multiple prospects, each situated within distinct fault blocks. The E prospect intersected oil-bearing sandstones within the 600-series lacustrine sands, encountering a gross oil column of 626 feet, which includes 162 feet of net oil pay. In an adjacent fault block, the D prospect encountered a similar oil-bearing reservoir section with a gross column of 849 feet and 172 feet of net oil pay. These successful intersections have effectively de-risked a third adjacent fault block (F), which is well-imaged on 3D seismic data.
The encountered net pay exceeds the company's pre-drill estimates, likely justifying the development of a new satellite facility on the block. Such a development could extend the productive life of the greater Manora field by tying into existing processing facilities, while also providing an opportunity to develop the proximal Malida field located 3.5 km to the east.
Separately, the company recently completed a development and appraisal drilling campaign on its Jasmine field. The campaign included four wellbores across the Jasmine-C and Jasmine-D platforms, successfully appraising several new zones that will be evaluated for potential future development.
