CNOOC spudded an exploration well called 206/21-1 targeting the Howick prospect in licence P2298 on 31 August 2019. Howick was thought to have a derived a mean recoverable volume of 74 MMboe. The well was drilled with the âIsland Innovatorâ. Operations wrapped up around the 17 October 2019 with the rig moving off location on 18 October 2019. On 24 October 2019 CNOOC confirmed the well was dry.  The prospect is a 4-way dip closure with Cretaceous and Jurassic target intervals of thick, sandy reservoirs. The reservoirs consist of the Lower Cretaceous Victory Formation and Middle Cretaceous Commodore Formation deposited in a shallow marine environment. The reservoirs are sourced by the Kimmeridge Clay Formation with the hydrocarbon phase interpreted to be oil. The Howick prospect has a CoS of 39%. A further Middle-Upper Jurassic reservoir forms a secondary target. Dunstan, Swinho and Embleton are additional leads that lie within the acreage which CNOOC estimate to hold 60 MMboe mean recoverable resources. Howick is interpreted through a full Pre-Stack Depth Migrated, broadband processed 3D seismic data set.   P2298 is held solely by CNOOC Petroleum Europe Ltd.
206/21- 01 (Howick) (CNOOC 100%) in P2298 block, P&A dry. The prospect is a 4-way dip closure with Cretaceous and Jurassic target intervals of thick, sandy reservoirs. The reservoirs consist of the Lower Cretaceous Victory Formation and Middle Cretaceous Commodore Fm deposited in a shallow marine environment. The reservoirs are sourced by the Kimmeridge Clay Formation with the hydrocarbon phase interpreted to be oil. The Howick prospect has a CoS of 39%. A further Middle-Upper Jurassic reservoir forms a secondary target.