Spain’s Repsol has struck 8.3mn cfd of gas with the second well of a five-well exploration program on its South-East Illizi block. The first well hit 3.7mn cfd at a depth of 1,070ms in the Ordovician shale reservoir (MEES, 16 November 2012); the latest hit a 50mn gas column and was drilled to a total depth of 1,510ms.

The large concession, acquired via 2009 bidding contains several former oil and gas discoveries and lies between BP’s In Amenas fields and the Libyan border. Exploration began in July 2011 with the acquisition of 2D and 3D seismic. Three further wells are planned during 2013. (CONTINUED - 382 WORDS)