The well, Main Pass 270-3, was drilled in offshore Louisiana in 2015, but was not tested at that time.

A jacket has been fabricated and installed in the shallow water block allowing testing in recent days.

Hummer flowed over 48 hours on restricted rates on variable choke sizes, with an average rate of 19.88 million cubic feet of gas per day and 396 barrels of condensate per day with no formation water.

The well flowed from a Miocene-age sand, although the logs suggest that there are other pay zones.

Those will become the focus for near-field exploration in the Main Pass 270 block as significant production occurs from similar reservoirs along trend.

Petsec said that the Hummer well will now be suspended and further work will be undertaken to design, fabricate and install permanent facilities and pipelines.

First production from the well is now expected in mid-2017.

“We are very pleased with the drilling and test results of this initial well on the Hummer project,” Petsec executive chairman Terry Fern said.

“This success is the culmination of an effort that began prior to 2010 when Petsec initially identified the prospect on 3D seismic data and continued through leasing and eventual drilling of the project several years later.

“Hummer is a significant oil and gas discovery covering a large prospective area and extending over portions of three offshore lease blocks that will require additional wells and facilities to define and develop.

“Although current information is limited from a single well and test, the indicated resource potential significantly exceeds the company’s pre-drill mapped target estimates.”

Petsec holds a 10.24% net revenue interest in the block, with the balance shared by a range of private US oilers, including operator Castex Offshore.

Petsec said previously that Hummer could increase its US reserves tenfold.

The company’s shares were steady at $0.15 this morning.