Tunisia lllizi Ghadames exploration basin

Exploration in the Tunisian Illizi Ghadames Basin has presented an attractive investment opportunity stimulated by a string of small but profitable discoveries which have added 193 mmboe of reserves over the last ten years. Developments have been characterised by rapid low cost start ups achieved by recompleting discovery wells as producers and tapping into the well established infrastructure network. However the average discovery size is small and in decline reflecting the increasing maturity of the basin. The basin still offers niche explorers the opportunity to create good returns based on modest investment. However yet to find estimates and potential prospect sizes are smaller than elsewhere in North Africa and the resulting value creation is modest. In this report Wood Mackenzie examines the key issues impacting exploration in the Silurian oil play in the basin and provides the cost and returns metrics from historical and forecast exploration activity in this play.