Tullow Oil sets eyes on Western Kenya’s Nyakach district

British explorer Tullow Oil has said it is to start 2D seismic surveys in Nyanza province’s Kisumu County where it believes has potential for oil.

The survey is part of a continuation of studies carried out in 2012 in Block 12B that showed various counties including Kisumu, Homa Bay, Migori and Kericho could have oil deposits.

According to the infrastructure executive at Tullow Oil Vincent Kodera the company is currently carrying out sensitization programmes with the community to iron out security, infrastructure and other issues even as the company continues to carry out surveys to establish potential oil areas in the region.

The survey that is expected to take six months follows the obtaining of the certificate of exploration from the ministry of energy and petroleum and will see the survey conducted in Nyakach, Muhoroni, Nyando and along Lake Victoria.

According to Kodera the company will now put up a drilling machine in Nyakach district with drilling expected to start by mid June and eventual prospecting in August.

In 2012  Tullow Oil and its joint partner Swala Energy carried carried out an airborne gravity-magnetic survey over Block 12B. The new gravity data confirms an area of pronounced gravity low over the Nyanza rift. Preliminary computer modelling and interpretation of the gravity and magnetic data support the view that the Nyanza Rift is underlain by a sedimentary basin of up to two to three kilometres thick.

The results of the work carried out by the Joint Venture during Year 1 (2012) of the work programme allowed the partners to decide to proceed into Year 2 and to acquire seismic data over the area in conjunction with a magnetic-tellurics (MT) survey that was expected to commence during August. The seismic programme to be carried out was also set to happen during 4th Quarter of 2013.

The seismic data will be used to identify structures for future drilling.