BPC announced the commencement of the drilling of Perseverance #1 offshore Bahamas. The well was spud on 20 December 2020, at 06.30 EST. The well is anticipated to take 45 - 60 days to complete.
Perseverance #1 is targeting P50 prospective oil resources of 0.77 billion barrels, with an upside of 1.44 billion barrels.
Simon Potter, Chief Executive Officer, said "We are very pleased to announce that the drilling of Perseverance #1 has commenced - the well has been spud. This is a momentous milestone for both BPC and The Bahamas and represents the culmination of more than ten years work by a team who have remained steadfast in their belief in this project throughout - that it is finally taking place is a testament to the application, skill and professionalism of many people over those years. The well will be drilled to the highest environmental and safety standards over the next 45 - 60 days. Our Shareholders have been extremely patient, but we are now within a couple of months of understanding the scale of potential resource uplift that might be accessed within the licences: a potential uplift that is the traditional domain of the 'oil majors'.
"More than a decade ago BPC secured several offshore hydrocarbon licences in the far-southern waters of The Bahamas. Convinced of the compelling prospectivity of those licences, the Company has spent close to $120 million bettering our technical understanding, continuing to de-risk the play, and ultimately preparing meticulously for exploration drilling. Our 3D seismic survey revealed structures that have the potential to contain a world class, multibillion barrel oil resource that, if present in the way we hope, could prove to be transformative - not just for our company, but for the nation and people of The Bahamas as a whole.
"I very much look forward to updating shareholders with results once the well has been completed. The next several weeks will be a truly exciting time for BPC."
The Stena IceMax is being used to drill the well.