Kea has commenced drilling of its Douglas-1 well on permit PEP 51153 within New Zealand's onshore Taranaki Basin. The Douglas prospect is mapped as a Tikorangi Limestone target at a depth of 9,843 feet (3,000 meters), which Kea expects to reach in four weeks.

Oil has been produced at prolific rates from the Tikorangi Limestone reservoir in the adjacent Waihapa field, which abuts the Douglas trap at Tikorangi level.

Kea recently completed a key seismic line over the Douglas prospect which upgraded Kea's mapping of this high-upside prospect, which, in the event of a commercial discovery, could be brought into production without delay utilizing equipment already on site.

Tags: Kea Petroleum