Shell and its joint venture (JV) partners, Pavilion Energy and Ophir Energy, have started their drilling program offshore Tanzania.

The $80-million campaign, which consists of one well in Block 1 and another in Block 4, will take place in the Mafia Deep basin. The drillship supporting the program–the Noble Globetrotter 2–will be operating in water depths of up to 2,300 m.

According to Shell, the two wells will meet the remaining exploration requirements as per the licenses issued by Tanzania’s Ministry of Energy and Minerals.

The development of Blocks 1 and 4 is part of the Tanzania LNG project. Shell and its Block 1 and 4 partners are working with Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) and other Block 2 partners on future development of the project’>project.

“In the current investment climate, there is a critical need to have strong project’>project fundamentals, including government support and cooperation,” Shell said.

Shell became the operator of the two blocks in February, after its combination with BG Group.

Source: www.worldoil.com