Tullow Oil has admitted disappointing results from its recent exploration activities in Mauritania and Angola and has abandoned two wells after it made no commercial discovery.
In a drilling update issued today, Tullow said drilling on the Faucon-1 well offshore from Mauritania, in which the company has a 20 per cent interest, had been completed and that the well will now be plugged and abandoned.
In Angola Block 10, a two-well exploration programme at the Ngueve-1 and Henda-1 wells has also concluded and both wells have been plugged and abandoned. Tullow had a 15 per cent stake in those projects.
Tullow said Block 10 is a largely unexplored area covering some 4,800 sq km.
"Although the wells did not encounter commercial hydrocarbons, they provided key geological and geophysical information that will be integrated with the 3D seismic data to allow further evaluation of the prospectivity of Block 10 and the region," Tullow said in a statement.
Tullow chief executive Aidan Heavey said: "Although we believe the Faucon well is most unlikely to lead to a commercial development, it significantly upgrades the prospectivity of Tullow's regional position in Mauritania and Senegal, where further work is planned for 2006.
"Similarly, while we are disappointed with the result of the Ngueve and Henda wells, we remain committed to developing a long-term business in Angola. "