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Seismic challenges of developing the pre-Pliocene Akhen Field offshore Nile Delta

BP, Cairo, Egypt

Jim Mika, Sondra Rothe and Yan Quist

BP, Houston, Texas, U.S.

Corresponding author: martenr1@bp.com

The first 20% of the full text of this article appears below.

BP's recent drilling results in the Akhen gas field, offshore Egypt, provide an excellent case study into the challenges of drilling and developing the pre-Pliocene in the Nile Delta. The challenges are significant and include Pliocene overpressure cells, variable thickness and rugosity of Miocene aged anhydrite, deep and complex structural elements, and seismic quality challenges. However, the reservoirs in the pre-Pliocene are known to contain very condensate-rich gas with high reservoir pressures and significant exploration potential, making this basin and this play a significant asset in BP's global portfolio.

The Akhen Field is located within the Ras El Bar concession in approximately 100 m of water (Figure 1). The field actually lies on the western flank of the much larger Temsah-Akhen structure, which is over 40 km in length. Currently producing fields on the structure include Akhen and Temsah Northwest. The eastern end of the structure contains the yet to be developed Temsah Field (Figure 2). The primary production interval in these fields comes from Serravallian (Miocene) aged reservoirs at depths ranging from 3.5 to 4.5 km. The fields are jointly operated and owned by BP and ENI.

View larger version (99K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Figure 1. Location map of the Temsah-Akhen structure and fields. The 40-km long structure lays off the Egyptian coast in water depths of approximately 100 m, in both the Ras El Bar and Temsah concessions.

View larger version (49K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Figure 2. 3D view of the structure showing the fields and well penetrations. The current number of producing wells is also indicated. The Temsah Field is yet to be put on production.