Hess Corp. will not be drilling either an exploratory or appraisal well offshore Ghana in 2015, it is clear from its budget.
The U.S. Independent will spend $220Million or over one sixth (18.3%) of the $1.2Billion Production budget, on two producer wells in the Okume Complex in Equatorial Guinea. It is also 4.6% of the overall E&P budget of $4.7Billion. But no other African country is on its radar.
In 2014, Hess budgeted $350 Million to drill five production wells at the Okume Complex and progress facility work at the Sendje Ceiba floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO) at Block G (Hess 85 percent – operator) in Equatorial Guinea. The same year witnessed the company drilling three appraisal wells and running one Drill stem test off Ghana, a programme expected to consume the bulk of $500Million exploration budget for that year.
E&P spending is down by 37% in Equatorial Guinea and is at zero in Ghana in 2015.
“Our 2015 budget includes continued offshore production drilling at the Tubular Bells and Shenzi fields in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, at the South Arne Field in Denmark, the Valhall Field in Norway, and also in the Joint Development Area of the Gulf of Thailand. Additionally the budget will fund continued full field development of the North Malay Basin project in Malaysia and development of the Stampede Field in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. Our 2015 exploration drilling program includes wells in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, offshore Guyana and Kurdistan.”
