ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas investment arm of ONGC, has struck oil in Colombia.
Initial assessment of the well drilled in the block CPO-5 produced oil varying in rate from 120 barrels of oil per day (BOPD) to 300 BOPD. The oil is heavy in nature with API gravity of about 14, the company said in a statement issued here.
The CPO-5 block is located on land in llanos basin of Colombia and is under phase 1 of exploration having commitment of drilling two exploratory wells, it said, adding that OVL is the operator of the block having 70 per cent participating interest.
The first of the two commitment wells — Kamal-1X was drilled on October 29, 2012, up to the target depth of 10,500 feet. To assess the potential and commerciality of the oil find, extended production testing will be taken up in due course for the remaining object within Upper Mirador Formation at a depth of 9,533 feet, the company said.
Meanwhile, the company is gearing up to make the initial drilling of the second commitment well in the block in January. The results from the two wells will lead to increase in exploratory efforts in the block which has an inventory of exploration leads based on the studies made so far, the company said.
OVL was awarded the block in the 2008 bidding round in Colombia with 100 per cent participating interest. In 2010, 30 per cent of the participating interest in CPO-5 block was divested to Petrodorado.