The BGP Prospector vessel began its seismic data acquisition campaign to evaluate offshore hydrocarbon potential, according to a March 20 report. The operation started on March 1 with the deployment of ten seismic cables and source testing, leading to the first data collection on March 7.
This campaign is significant as it aims to gather information that could impact future energy exploration and development in the national offshore area. In its first week, the project collected 78 square kilometers of seismic data, representing about three percent of the total project scope.
Marine fauna observers recorded 59 sightings in the area before activating the seismic source. After mitigation protocols were implemented between March 7 and 8, there were sixteen additional sightings and eight detections using passive acoustic monitoring. In response to these events, operations were postponed four times and halted seven times due to marine life entering mitigation zones—defined as one thousand meters for cetaceans and six hundred meters for sea turtles.
No environmental or occupational health and safety incidents were reported during this period. Although two fishing vessels were observed near the seismic ship, no intervention was necessary.
The project is being carried out by CGG Services USA Inc (Viridien) under a multi-client agreement with ANCAP.
