Oil Well Off S.I. East Coast

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32361, 29 July 1970, Page 1

Oil Well Off S.I. East Coast

(New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, July 28.

A new oil well, Endeavour No. 1, will be drilled by the Sedco 135 F rig off the east coast of the South Island. Drilling would probably begin towards the end of October or early in November, the Shell-BP-Todd consortium said in a statement today.

The drilling is in licence area 685, about 13 miles south-east of Oamaru.

towed to the east coast after completing the Baku No. 1 well for Hematite Petroleum New Zealand, Ltd, and the Cook No. 1 well, off Farewell Spit, for New Zealand Aquitaine Petroleum, Ltd. Endeavour No. 1 will be the first off-shore well on the east coast of New Zealand. The decision to drill a well off the Canterbury-Otago coast was made after an appraisal of seismic information obtained over a number of years from the licence area. The most-recent survey was made in December, 1969. Nearly $900,000 has been spent on marine seismic work within the area. The proposed location of the well is in about 130 feet of water about 11 miles from land.

The Sedco rig ’ would be

It is programmed to be drilled to 8500 feet. Shell-BP-Todd had its first interest in Canterbury in 1961 when Leeston No. 1 was drilled to 3801 feet. The J. D. George No. 1 well was drilled to 5413 feet in the Ashburton area in 1969. Both wells were abandoned as dry and the consortium relinquished its onshore prospecting licences. The consortium acquired an offshore concession in 1965.