Pantera to Invest up to US$11 Million in Pasuku Appraisal

This week, the National Hydrocarbons Commission (CNH) approved an appraisal program put forward by Pantera E&P for its Pasuku discovery. The 17.9km² area designated for evaluation lies within contract CNH-R02-L02-A10.CS/2017, located on the southern border of the Macuspana oil region in Tabasco’s Southeast Basin. 

Pantera’s objective is to evaluate the geological potential of the upper Miocene horizon in the lower Amate formation, to determine its volume of hydrocarbons available before defining the productive potential and commercial viability of the reservoirs. 

To this end, Pantera has proposed two different activities based on two potential scenarios. The base scenario seeks to conduct 11 seismic studies before assessing the information acquired, while the incremental scenario proposes 14 further studies and the reprocessing of 3D seismic data before proceeding with the drilling of two further wells, Pasuku-2DEL and Pasuku-3DEL, followed by pressure-production tests and two extended reach tests. The investment required for the base scenario has been set at US$78,000, while US$11.13 million is to be allocated for the incremental scenario.

In 2019, CNH originally approved Pantera’s exploration plans for its Mascupana interests, which stretch across a 347.33km² area around 60km southeast of Villahermosa. CNH also greenlighted Pantera in May 2022 to proceed with exploration plans for Sakb1EXP, Taakin-1EXP, Jobon-1EXP, Pakxuki-1EXP, Jaax-1EXP and Xuup-1EXP. All of these projects fall under the same contract. As of June 2022, Pasuku-1EXP is the only well producing natural gas, contributing 1.113MMcf/d

Pantera is a joint venture between Mexican company Jaguar E&P and Canadian E&P firm Sun God Resources. The consortium is expected to become a major contributor to Mexico’s natural gas production, targeting a total output of 100MMcf/d by 2024. Pantera, however, has faced some major delays with CNH notably granting the company an extension of 160 days in March 2022 to conclude an evaluation program in Tamaulipas relating to contract CNH-R02-L02-A5 BG/2017. CNH deemed the delays not attributable to Pantera, with the regulatory body noting that the area in question, located between the Rio Bravo and Reynosa municipalities, is considered one of the most dangerous to operate in. As part of the revised exploration, evaluation and development plan, Pantera is set to drill five wells with the aim of incorporating 494.98Bcf of natural gas and 3.61MMboe of condensate.