(Ecofin Agency) - Bowleven Plc, a British oil and gas company with an exploration drilling permit on Bomono on onshore Cameroon, has drilled a hydrocarbon interval with the Zingana well within the permit area located in the Douala basin in Cameroon.

This first exploration well, drilled in the permit zone 20 km North-West of Douala, reached a total depth of 1720 m. The oil and gas company based in Edinburgh announced on 24 July that hydrocarbons were encountered in the prognosed Paleocene aged reservoir interval.

“We are encouraged by the well results to date at Zingana”, said Kevin Hart, chief executive of Bowleven, adding that the evaluation of log and well data at Zingana is continuing.

Based on this success, the oil and gas company listed in London has moved the drilling rig to the site of the second well, Moambe well, located just two kilometres east of Zingana, the first well in a two-well exploration program.

Bowleven Plc has 100% ownership and operation of Bomono permit, incorporating two blocs that cover an area of 2328 km2, and obtained in 2014, a one-year extension of this licence which expires on 2 December 2015.