Canada’s Western Zagros has released an operational update on its licences in the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq.

Drilling and testing operations continues at West Zagros’ Mil Qasim-1 and Kurdamir-2 wells in the Garmian and Kurdamir blocks, the company said in a 10 January statement.

The Mil Qasim-1 well was cased to a depth of 2,129 metres and successfully drilled to a final total depth of 2,425 metres. The planned testing programme of the Upper Fars sandstone reservoir is ongoing.

The Kurdamir-2 exploration well has been drilled to a depth of about 2,270 metres and operations “remain on time and on budget”, says the statement. Drilling and testing of the reservoir will occur in the first quarter of 2012, with deeper reservoirs expected to be drilled and tested by the end of the second quarter of 2012.

Oil production at the Sarqala-1 test well averaged more than 4,000 barrels a day (b/d) in December. The company is expects production to increase in January and is currently increasing the tank storage capacity. Production from the well is refined locally by the Natural Resources Ministry.