Touchstone Makes Third Find in Trinidad

Canada's Touchstone Exploration has made a "significant" gas discovery after drilling the Chinook-1 well at the Ortoire exploration block in Trinidad and Tobago, it said on October 14.

The find is Touchstone's third at Ortoire since it began drilling last year.  Chinook-1 was sunk to a depth of 3,060 m to test a separate structural formation 1.5 km south from the Cascadura gas discovery. Wireline logs indicated a "significant" gas pay totalling 180 m in three unique thrust sheets in Herrera sands. A further 6-m pay was encountered in the shallower Cruse formation.

"The results from the Chinook well exceeded pre-drill expectations. The successful exploration well further confirms the geological model developed by our team and is expected to provide significant development opportunities in the Chinook area," Touchstone CEO Paul Baay said. "With both the shallow and deepest zones being new to the area, it also identified future exploration opportunities."

Touchstone plans to complete and test the well in the first quarter of 2021, to evaluate the discovery's economic potential. The rig Touchstone used should move to the Cascadura Deep location before the end of the month, where it will drill another exploration well, the company said.

Touchstone operates Ortoire with a 80% interest, while local state-owned partner Heritage Petroleum has 20%.