Noble Energy has reached an agreement with BP Exploration & Production to acquire 50% of BP’s interest in 17 deepwater exploration leases in the Gulf of Mexico. Each of the leases resides in the Atwater Valley protraction area, with Noble Energy acquiring a 50% working interest in 13 leases and an average 26% working interest in 4 leases.
As part of the transaction, Noble Energy is participating with a 50% working interest in the Bright prospect, which is currently drilling on Atwater Valley Block 362 in a water depth of approximately 5,600ft. Susan M. Cunningham, senior vice president, Gulf of Mexico, West Africa and Frontier, said: “The deepwater Gulf of Mexico is one of Noble Energy’s core areas and today we have expanded our opportunity set there through the successful capture of a number of attractive and sizeable prospects. We have multiple opportunities for substantial hydrocarbon discovery in the near-term, with the Katmai prospect results expected by our second quarter earnings call and the Bright prospect anticipated to be at total depth by the end of the third quarter. In addition to our exploration programs, we are also currently drilling a second well at Dantzler as we progress multiple major projects toward first production.”