Invictus Energy is set to drill a sidetrack from its Mukuyu-1 wildcat in Zimbabwe in order take an important fluid sample from prospective reservoirs.

Once the sampling operation has been completed, the sidetrack will be suspended for future testing.

According to rigworker.com, sidetracking is done to bypass an obstruction (“fish”) in the original wellbore, to explore the extent of a producing zone in a certain sector of a field, or to sidetrack a dry hole to a more promising target.

Wells are also sidetracked to access more reservoir by drilling from the existing well bore.

“…continued to encounter multiple reservoir units with elevated gas shows and fluorescence until total depth, proving up the potential of the Upper Angwa formation over a 900-metre gross interval,” said Invictus managing director Scott Macmillan.

He said that Mukuyu-1 wellbore was successfully deepened to a measured depth of 3923 metres.

The company’s stock price in Australia fell some 21% to A$0.25 (US$0.17) on the sidetrack news.

Meanwhile board chairperson and non-executive director Dr Stuart Lake announced his almost immediate exit from the company.