(de Ware Tijd) PARAMARIBO — Exploration drilling in the Coronie Swamp has yielded oil. Patrick Brunings, operations manager of Paradise Oil Company confirms finds at three of the five wells. He warns, however, that the find constitutes nothing, although it could affect the decision on continuation of the project.
With its 2,586 sq. km, Coronie is one of Staatsolie’s largest concessions in the coastal plane. In 2007, Staatsolie and its subsidiary Paradise Oil signed a contract with the British Tullow Oil for exploration, development and production of oil in the Coronie marshland and swamps. Exploration started two years ago. The first well was drilled 15 kilometers to the south of the Oost-West Verbinding, a coastal highway. ‘Exploration in wetlands is practically impossible, so we had to invent some methods of our own’, Bruning explains. ‘We had to cut through the swamps, but getting the equipment in the swamp was not an easy matter. We had to transport the rig on the Saramacca River, partly on the Atlantic Ocean and then on land in Burnside to the swamp.
The five exploration drillings aimed at geographically mapping the wetlands. The company lacked data because there have not been drillings in the area before, so it applied the so-called ‘wild cats’ method, random drillings. ‘We normally do not expect to finds oil in such operations, so the strikes do not mean much for now’, the POC executive adds. Although Coronie locals had doubted the project, they now see possible benefits. District Commissioner Harold Sijlbing refrains from cheering. ‘Let’s first find out if there are reserves and whether these are recoverable.’
He sees opportunities for the people of Coronie, though, now that the project might move into another phase. ‘In the first phase there were only experts, with a few odd jobs for local help. If the project is continued, the local population might participate more.’ POC has made some sustainable investments in the district to show its involvement. Last week, several needy students received looking glasses. The waterway dug out in the swamp could be used for tourist operations later.
