Melbana Energy Limited (ASX: MAY) has announced the commencement of drilling operations for the Amistad-2 production well. The drilling began in the early hours of Thursday, 18 September 2025 (Cuba time). Melbana Energy is an Australian oil and gas company focused on exploration and appraisal. The company holds a portfolio of exploration and appraisal assets in Australia, Cuba and New Zealand.
According to the announcement, the drill bit had reached a depth of 37 metres and was progressing further at the time of the report. The Amistad-2 well is planned to reach a total depth of 1125 metres measured depth (MD).
The drilling program includes logging the Unit 1A formation, but it will not be tested during drilling. A 650-metre MD section of the Unit 1B formation will be drilled with the objective of intersecting a series of natural fracture systems identified from seismic data.
The geological target is located approximately 850 metres southwest of, and 200 metres up-dip to, the Alameda-2 well. This location is near the crestal-axis of a localised anticline, which is interpreted to have significant fracturing of the carbonate reservoir, increasing the potential for oil production.
