Mari Petroleum Company Ltd (MPCL) has plugged and abandoned the Miraj 1 new field wildcat (NFW) well within the Ghauri 3273-3 EL (Potwar Basin) onshore concession during the last week of July 2020 after carrying out testing. The company had initiated testing in early July after drilling to a TD of 4,934 m in the second sidetrack hole â reached in June 2020. The well was spudded on 4 May 2019 using the Mari-3 land rig with a prognosed TD of 5,270 m in the Cambrian Khewra Formation. Miraj 1 was the third exploratory well in the block and it was mainly targeting the Eocene Sakesar formation and Cambrian Khewra formation. It is located on the Harno prospect.  MPCL had reported on 30 April 2020 in its quarterly report (quarter ending 31 March 2020) that the well reached the TD of 4,976 m (assumed TVD, as TD elsewhere reported as 5,045 m) in the Cambrian Khewra Formation on 25 March 2020. After reaching TD, the company encountered stuck string problem during logging which could not be retrieved, and it was decided to initiate a second sidetrack in order to reach Khewra formation for testing and evaluation. Drilling activity for second sidetrack is subsequently understood to have started in late May 2020 from the kick-off point (KOP) of 4,889 m.    Miraj 1 was drilling at 2,085 m depth by the end of May 2019, reached 2,487 m by the end of June and progressed to 3,311 m during mid-July 2019. It was drilling at 3,754 m depth by the end of July, reached 4,052 m by mid-August 2019 and was drilling at 4,455 m depth by the end of the month. After reaching 4,533 m by mid-September 2019, the well progressed to 4,561 m depth by the end of the month, reached 4,648 m during mid-October and 4,864 m at the end of October 2019. After drilling to a depth of 5,045 m by the end of November 2019, the company had conducted testing from mid-December 2019 to late January 2020. The company had initiated the first sidetrack in late January 2020 and it was drilling at 4,740 m depth in the sidetrack hole by the end of February 2020.    The Ghauri block currently covers an area of 889 sq km in the Punjab province and the equity split is as follows: MPCL (65%, operator) and Pakistan Petroleum Ltd (PPL) (35%).    MPCL made the Dharian 1 oil discovery in the Ghauri EL concession in April 2019. A drill stem test (DST) was carried out in the Cambrian Khewra Sandstone formation and it flowed 372 bo/d of 29â API through 64/64â choke at a wellhead flowing pressure of 10 to 25 psi. It also flowed 304 bw/d during testing. The well was spudded on 21 December 2017 and drilled to a TD of 4,770 m (4,472 m TVD) in the Khewra Sandstone. It was targeting the Eocene Sakesar and Cambrian Khewra formations.  Ghauri X-1 was the first well drilled in the block through which the company had made an oil discovery in April 2014.    Â     Background Information    Ghauri EL was originally awarded to Mari Gas Company Ltd (MGCL) on 16 February 2010 with an area of 1,292 sq km. MGCL then assigned 35% interests to Pakistan Petroleum Ltd (PPL) with effect from 11 July 2011 making the equity split as: Mari Petroleum Company Ltd (65%, operator) and Pakistan Petroleum Ltd (35%).    On 14 March 2013 MOL Pakistan Oil & Gas Co BV (a wholly owned subsidiary of the Hungarian state oil company) announced that it had signed a farmout agreement with MPCL that would see it acquire a 30% stake in the block.     Mari Gas Company Ltd changed its name to Mari Petroleum Company Limited (MPCL) with effect from 19 November 2012.    Seven wells are known to have been drilled within the area covered by the licence to date, none of which has resulted in a hydrocarbon discovery. The most recent of these (Boski 1) was P&A (dry) after reaching TD at 4,611m in June 2003.     Mari Petroleum Company Ltd acquired 252 line km of 2D seismic (dynamite / vibroseis source) in the block during June-October 2012 using the BGP â0288â seismic crew. The company was granted a one-year extension to the third licence year of the block with effect from 16 February 2013.     MPCL was granted an additional one-year extension to the third licence year of the Ghauri 3273-3 EL onshore concession with effect from 16 February 2014.     MPCL had announced the Ghauri X-1 oil discovery on 30 April 2014. The company reported that successful drill stem tests (DSTs) were carried out in the Cambrian Kussak and Eocene Sakesar formations. The well, post-acidisation, flowed from the Sakesar Formation at a rate of 5,500 bo/d, through a 32/64â choke, with pressure of 1,100 psi. The same formation, without acidisation, had flowed 1,200 bo/d through a 28/64â choke. The well flowed from the Kussak Formation in surges, with nitrogen lift, at a rate of 136 bo/d.     MPCL acquired 452 sq km 3D seismic during August 2015 â March 2016 period.    MPCL was granted an additional one-year extension to the third licence year of the Ghauri EL from 16 February 2015 to 15 February 2016. The company subsequently entered into Phase-II of the initial exploration period of the licence with effect from 16 February 2016 and the area was reduced to 889 sq km.    MPCL was granted an eight-month extension to the Phase-II of initial term of Ghauri EL from 16 February 2018 to 15 October 2018.  It was reported in July 2018 that MPCL acquired MOL Pakistanâs full 30% interest in the block with effect from 1 May 2017. Prior to acquisition the equity split was as follows: MPCL (35%, operator), PPL (30%) and MOL (30%). MPCLâs Board of Directors had granted the approval on 27 July 2017.
(Potwar B.) Miraj 1 op. by PPL (35%), FAUJI (26%), GHPL (26%), OGDCL (13%) in Ghauri 3273-3 EL block, plugged and abandoned after carrying out testing. The company had initiated testing in early July after drilling to a TD of 4,934 m in the second sidetrack hole â reached in June 2020. 