BP marked a return to the deep water today – in Africa.

Seven months after its accident in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico, the UK oil group announced it has made a significant discovery in the deepwater West Nile Delta area in Egypt.

The Hodoa discovery – Hodoa means ‘horseshoe’ – is located in the West Mediterranean Deepwater, some 80km northwest of Alexandria. The WMDW-7 well was drilled to a depth of 6350m and is the first Oligocene Deep Water discovery in the West Nile Delta area.