KUWAIT - Exploration.

In mid-1995 KOC suspended exploration work to concentrate on a seismic survey of Kuwait costing about $127m. Western Geophysical (Western Atlas) was contracted for $50m to do a 2-D survey of onshore and offshore areas over three to five years starting from Feb. 1996. Geco-Prakla of the UK (a unit of Schlumberger) was hired for about $75m to do a 3-D survey, the first ever in Kuwait, for five years, to concentrate on the primary reservoirs to examine the oil and gas formations of Burgan, Greater Burgan, Raudhatain, Sabriya, Umm Gudair and Minagish. Texaco and KOC formed a joint team to do 3-D surveys on Kuwait's side of the Divided Zone, in Wafra, and the Humma formation believed to have big potential.

The first to explore in Kuwait was a BP-Gulf Oil partnership, KOC. It won a 6,000 sq mile concession in Dec. 1934. Its exploration led to the discovery of Burgan in 1938 and, after World War II, it found Magwa in 1951 and Ahmadi in 1952 with both being extensions of Burgan. It found Raudhatain in 1955 and Bahra and Sabriya in 1956. Later KOC explored the south-west and south, having enlarged its concession to cover most of the emirate with the exception of the Divided Zone. It was guided mainly by the Greater Burgan Trend's extensions to the west and south. It found Minagish in 1959, Umm Gudair in 1962 and Rugei in 1972.

In 1948, the American Independent Oil Co. (Aminoil) won the onshore concession in the Neutral Zone and began exploration in the following year. It found Wafra in 1953 and South Umm Gudair in 1966. In 1958, AOC won the offshore concession in the Neutral Zone and found Khafji in 1960, Hout in 1963, Lulu in 1966 and Dorra in 1967.

Kuwait nationalised KOC on Dec. 1, 1975 (see background in Vol. 56, Gas Market Trends No. 21).