Oil exploration firm CGX Energy Inc. has started drilling on its wholly-owned Corentyne block from which it was evicted by Surinamese gunboats in 2000.

The company announced in a press release Monday that drilling has started at the Eagle-1 well located on its Corentyne Petroleum Prospecting License.

“The Eagle-1 well will be drilled to a depth of 4,250 metres to test the Eocene and Maastrichtian geologic zones. The well is being drilled by the Ocean Saratoga semi-submersible drilling rig owned by a subsidiary of Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc. DO -0.60% , a leading drilling contractor with over 40 years of global drilling experience. Drilling is expected to take approximately 60 days,” the release read.

"Today marks a significant milestone in the history of CGX. We are returning to drill the Eagle prospect that was halted in June 2000 due to overlapping maritime border claims between Guyana and Suriname,” President and CEO Steve Hermeston is reported as saying.

“Renewed exploration follows over seven years of dedication and co-operation between the Government of Guyana and CGX in resolving the Maritime Boundary between Guyana and Suriname peacefully and finally through the International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) process.

Monday’s announcement follows last week’s in which the company announced that drilling had started at the Jaguar-1 well being operated by Repsol in which CGX has a 25 percent stake.  

CGX Energy is a Canadian-based oil and gas exploration company focused on the exploration of oil in the Guyana-Suriname Basin, an area that is ranked second in the world for oil and gas prospectivity by the United States Geological Service.