Map showing location of the Touchstone Exploration logging activity in the Ortoire Block, Coho-1, Cascadura-1ST and Chinook-1 wells onshore Trinidad. © NVentures.Since August 2019, Touchstone Exploration of Canada have been quietly logging impressive net gas pays and proving up significant gas reserves in Trinidad’s mature southern onshore trend. Characterised by a complex transpressive fold/thrust belt consisting of thick Tertiary clastic sequences, the province harbours an impressive amount of hydrocarbons, but the complex stratigraphic and structural geology, compounded by some poor reservoirs and challenging pressure regimes, has provided its share of challenges. Touchstone seemed to have cracked the nut on the eastern end of the trend on their Ortoire Block with the Coho-1 well, logging over 30m net oil and gas pay, and testing on average 11.6 MMcfpd; the Cascadura-1ST, logging over 300m net oil and gas pay and testing on average 28.1 MMcfpd, and most recently the Chinook-1, logging 185m net pay and to be tested soon. Estimated 1P and 2P reserves for Coho and Cascadura to date total over 45 MMboe.
In this part of the trend, originally thought of as primarily oil-prone, Touchstone re-interpreted old well data, some from the 1950s, and twinned some wells. The original operators, including Shell, were looking for oil but recent market conditions in Trinidad encouraged Touchstone to acquire a gas focus and completed the wells with gas tests in mind. The 125 km2 Ortoire Block, large by onshore standards, has significant room to run. Touchstone are at present drilling Cascadura-Deep 1, targeting Tertiary sands in three distinct thrust sheets. They then plan to test Chinook-1, and drill the Royston prospect, which will twin an old Shell well that found over 200m net sands with a strong gas effect, but was never tested.
