- Melbana Energy (MAY) reaches a depth of 2303 metres at its Zapato-1 well within the Block 9 contract area, onshore in Cuba
- The company says drilling continued in hard rock, where at about 2300 metres, the bit was retrieved and a decision was made to case more than a thousand metres of open hole
- The company said it expected to continue drilling ahead in the well this weekend
- Meanwhile, Melbana hosted a delegation from Sonangol at its offices in Melbourne for a week of technical, operational and financial meetings
- Shares in Melbana are down 1.2 per cent and trading at 8.4 cents at 3:17 pm AEST
Melbana Energy (MAY) has reached a depth of 2303 metres at its Zapato-1 well within the Block 9 contract area, onshore in Cuba.
The company said drilling continued in the past week in hard rock, where at about 2300 metres, the bit was retrieved and a decision was made to case more than a thousand metres of open hole.
Several logging runs were successfully conducted and drilling operations are now preparing the hole for the running then cementing of 9-5/8-inch casing.
Melbana expects to commence drilling ahead in 8-1/2-inch casing this weekend.
The company said the pre-drill prognosis for the primary objective was that it might begin at approximately 2650 metres, although the volcanics were encountered about 300 metres higher than expected.
However, the company said the ophiolite formation encountered was thicker than prognosed.
Meanwhile, Melbana hosted a delegation from Sonangol at its offices in Melbourne for a week of technical, operational and financial meetings.
Shares in Melbana were down 1.2 per cent and trading at 8.4 cents at 3:17 pm AEST.