JKX On Track for Hitting Russian Plant Capacity
UK explorer and producer JKX has said that it is well on its way to fulfilling the 40 million cubic feet a day (MMcfd) capacity of its Russian gas plant with the plant current operating at 50 per cent of that capacity.
The plant, which has been delayed by technical difficulties, processes gas from the JKX-operated Koshekhablskoye field. The plant then feeds into Gazprom's gas network in Russia. The company had expected to increase production from the field in April of this year. However, issues with several wells from the field have meant that production has not yet reached the levels JKX was expecting.
The company says that good progress has now been made on the problematic wells, ensuring that the plant is now on track to operate at full capacity from the first half of next year.
A sidetrack on well 27, which was completed in July with the well going into production in August, has doubled its production rate to more than 9 MMcfd. A blockage has also been cleared on another well, well 20, the company says, having been cleared using coiled tubing and acetic acid. That well has also been put into production at a rate of approximately 15 MMcfd.
"However, pressure measurements suggest that there is scope for further enhancement and preparations are being made for hydrochloric acid stimulation of this well," JKX said in an operational update today.
Rig operations have now moved to another well, with a sidetrack begun to begin the sidetrack of another well, well 25. However, another well, well 5, has now proven to be problematic for the company, with issues of sediment blockage or corrosion products interfering with the well, and a leak discovered in the tubing of that well. The well will now require a rig intervention to recover the tubing and drill a sidetrack to the Oxfordian reservoir, JKX says.
Coupled with successful operations in Ukraine, JKX now expects to reach a daily output of 10,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd).
"We are encouraged by the progress made on the three producing wells at our Russian gas plant and we remain on course to reach plant capacity of 40 MMcfd in the first half of 2013..." Chief Executive of JKX Paul Davies said.
"We are achieving strong oil, gas and LPG realisations in Ukraine and are beginning to see an improving revenue stream from our Russian development. We anticipate average daily production in the fourth quarter to reach 10,000 boepd."