Buckskin Prospect Gets U.S. Deepwater Drilling Permit

Maersk Oil is participating in a new deepwater well in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico after operator Chevron received a drilling permit from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE).

The permit marks the restart of the drilling campaigns Maersk Oil has been a part of in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico after deepwater activities were suspended last year as a consequence of the Deepwater Horizon accident.

“We are very pleased that this permit has been issued as it will allow us to move forward with appraisal activities on the exciting Buckskin prospect,” said Bruce Laws, President at Maersk Oil in the U.S.

“The U.S. Gulf of Mexico remains a world class region for exploration and production and we look forward to continuing our work there with our partners.”

The Buckskin appraisal well is located in the Keathley Canyon in Block 785, offshore Louisiana, at water depth of 6,540 feet. It is being drilled 8 kilometres from the discovery well that encountered oil in 2008.

Drilling began on 16th May, 2011 and the planned total depth is 29,400 feet. Drilling will last some 136 days.

Chevron is operator of Buckskin, holding a 55% interest with Maersk Oil (20%), Repsol (12.5%) and Samson (12.5%) as co-owners.