Shell recently announced an energy-exploration discovery at its Fort Sumter well in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, which it anticipates will generate more than 125 million barrels of oil equivalent, though that figure stands to increase with further appraisal drilling.
“The Fort Sumter discovery builds upon Shell’s global deep-water leadership,” Shell Executive Vice President of Exploration Ceri Powell said. “Its proximity to our nearby discoveries in the area, and to highly prospective acreage to the southeast, makes Fort Sumter particularly significant. These successes demonstrate there is still running room in the producing basins of our heartlands, where large, high-value discoveries have the potential to further strengthen our deep-water competitiveness.”
The well is located in Mississippi Canyon Block 566, a nine-square-mile area wholly operated by Shell, approximately 73 miles offshore New Orleans. The well was drilled at a depth of 7,062 feet and has a total depth of 28,016 feet. Shell also has drilled an appraisal sidetrack well that reaches a depth of 29,200.
The discovery brings Shell’s total exploration-added resources in the Gulf of Mexico to 1.3 billion barrels of oil equivalent since 2010, following exploration successes at the Appomattox, Vicksburg and Rydberg discoveries.
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