Deepwater

Hess Corp. said it has completed an appraisal well at its Pony discovery on Green Canyon Block 468 in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. Recoverable resources in the prospect are estimated to be 200 million boe. The Pony #2 sidetrack well encountered the same objective sands as the Pony #1 and #2 wells, Hess said. The sidetrack appraisal well reached a measured depth of 33,362 feet from a surface location 7,400 feet northwest of the discovery well. The main pay sand was oil-filled throughout the interval drilled. The appraisal well is part of an ongoing data gathering program that is being conducted over the Pony prospect, which is 100% owned by Hess. The company said it is evaluating development concepts for production from the Pony prospect before making a final investment decision.

The nearly two-month wait for the Independence Hub natural gas deepwater production platform in the Gulf of Mexico to come back on-line may be nearing an end as Enterprise Products Partners LP announced Tuesday it has completed repairs on the associated Independence Trail pipeline.

The wait for the Independence Hub natural gas deepwater production platform in the Gulf of Mexico to come back on-line got a little longer last week as Enterprise Products Partners LP announced that it was revising the restart date from “mid-May” to the “first half of June,” provided there are no “unexpected weather issues.”

Concern surrounding the delay in restarting the Independence Hub natural gas deepwater production platform in the Gulf of Mexico gave bulls a little boost overnight Tuesday and into Wednesday as June natural gas futures recorded an overnight high for the move of $11.794 before closing out Wednesday’s regular session at $11.598, up 17.6 cents from Tuesday’s close.

The wait for the Independence Hub natural gas deepwater production platform in the Gulf of Mexico to come back on-line got a little longer Tuesday night as Enterprise Products Partners LP announced that it was revising the restart date from “mid-May” to the “first half of June,” provided there are no “unexpected weather issues.”

The deepwater Gulf of Mexico Independence Hub natural gas platform and the associated Independence Trail pipeline were closed Wednesday after a leak was discovered in the pipe, according to Enterprise Products Partners LP, which owns 80% of the production platform and 100% of the pipeline.

The deepwater Gulf of Mexico Independence Hub natural gas platform and the associated Independence Trail pipeline were closed last Wednesday after a leak was discovered in the pipe, according to Enterprise Products Partners LP, which owns 80% of the production platform and 100% of the pipeline. The company gave a one-to-four week timeline for repairs.

Australian producer BHP Billiton has begun assessing how to repair its Neptune tension leg platform (TLP) in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico (GOM) after discovering “structural anomalies” last week.

The contribution of exploration in 2007 to the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) deepwater’s reserve base was the lowest in the past decade, according to a new report by consultant Wood Mackenzie. Reserves found amounted to only 553 million boe — less than half the reserves found in 2006.