Kenyan oil well releases 281 barrels per day in test drill

 Visitors tour the site of the Ngamia-1 well in Turkana county. Photo/FILE  Nation Media Group

By EMMANUEL ONYANGO
Posted  Monday, April 15  2013

One of Kenya's six oil wells has been releasing 281 barrels of oil a day (bopd) in a drill test conducted by British explorer Tullow Oil.

In a statement released on its Twitter handle, the oil company said the drill test at Ngamia-1 well in Block 10BB proved the commercial potential of oil reserves in the northern part of the country.

"At the Ngamia-1 well in Block 10BB in Kenya, the first of six drill stem tests has now been completed. The test was carried out in the Lower Lokhone formation. The well flowed 281 barrels of 30 degree API oil per day using a Progressive Cavity Pump," the statement said.

“The results from the first flow test at Ngamia are also very encouraging and prove the first potentially commercial flow from the Lower Lokhone reservoir section. The remaining tests in the Auwerwer reservoir units will give us a fuller indication of Ngamia’s production potential, ” said Angus McCoss, Exploration Director of Tullow Oil plc.

In February the British explorer announced it had completed a testing program for the Twiga South-1 well with results showing that the well has a cumulative flow rate of 2,812 barrels of oil per day (bopd)

It said that the well holds a potential of producing up to 5,200 barrels of oil per day if pumped using high efficiency equipment. (READ: Twiga South-1 well flows 2,800 bopd)