Italian major Eni has successfully drilled the first appraisal well in the Agogo discovery off Angola, a strategic country for the company's growth, it said in a statement on Thursday.
The Agogo-2, well results confirm the 650 million barrels of oil in place at the Agogo field and indicate further upside in its northern sector that will be assessed with new appraisal wells, said the statement
Data acquired in Agogo-2 indicate a production capacity in excess of 15,000 barrels of oil per day, according to the statement.
Eni plans to start first production from Agogo before the end of the year, the statement said.
"Meanwhile, Eni will continue the appraisal campaign to assess the discovery’s full potential and size its development," it said.
Agogo-2 was drilled by the Poseidon drillship, 3 kilometres north-west of the Agogo-1 discovery well, approximately 180 kilometres from the coast and 23 kilometres from the N’Goma West Hub floating production and storage facility.
The well was drilled in a water depth of 1,700 metres and reached a total depth of 3,949 metres.
Eni operates Block 15/06 and holds a 36.8421% stake of the asset, Angola's state-run Sonangol, 36.8421% and SSI Fifteen, 26.3158%.
Eni has had a presence since 1980 in Angola, where its equity production currently stands at about 150,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. In Block 15/06, Eni operates two development projects, West Hub and East Hub, which currently produce about 155,000 B/D of oil.
Eni is also operator of Cabinda Norte Block, located onshore Angola.
