**Its been an eventful week in the smallcaps underverse.**
Antrim Energy;
Today announced that, under the terms of the Joint Operating Agreement (the “JOA”), Antrim will regain working interest and reserves and anticipates regaining operatorship in UK Central North Sea licence P077 Block 21/28a (the “Fyne Licence”) from Premier Oil UK Limited (“Premier”) at no cost.
Antrim’s current working interest in the Fyne Licence of 35.1% will increase to between 58.4% and 100%, contingent on the election by the other party to the JOA. The continuance of the Fyne Licence and the increase in working interest is subject to the approval from the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change of the working interest and operatorship change. DECC is expected to make this determination in the coming weeks.
Aminex;
Announces the results from deepening the Ntorya-1 exploration well in the Ruvuma Basin onshore in Tanzania. On February 27th 2012, Aminex reported that a gas discovery had been made in a 25 metre gross sand interval between 2,660 metres and 2,685 metres with a 3 metre net gas bearing pay zone in sandstones having 20% porosity at the top and a 16.5 metre thick lower sandstone interval with further possible gas pay. After running a 7-inch liner to 2,750 metres, the well was deepened to a final total depth of 3,150 metres and wireline logging was carried out. Although encouraging gas readings were recorded over a 300 metre interval from 2,850 metres to TD, a deeper target horizon identified on seismic at approximately 3,000 metres was found not to have reservoir potential. The well will now be plugged back to the base of the 7-inch liner and completed for testing the gas pay interval. A test programme will be carried out after the rig has been moved off location.
Chariot Oil & Gas;
Signed a production sharing contract with the government of Mauritania for a 90% interest and operatorship in offshore Block C19. The contract covers an area of 14,125 sq km and consists of an initial three year period, during which Chariot has agreed to reprocess the existing 2D seismic datasets and then to carry out a 1,600 sq km 3D seismic survey. Following the results of this work, Chariot may then elect to move forward into subsequent phases of the contract which would involve the undertaking of exploration drilling activities.
Enegi Oil;
Has raised £2.925 million before expenses through the issue of 19,500,000 new Ordinary Shares to institutional investors at a price of 15 pence per Placing Share. Net proceeds of the Placing will primarily be used to facilitate the Company’s immediate planned activity in western Newfoundland, which includes purchasing additional production equipment for the Garden Hill South site to enable the Company to move quickly into the production phase once regulatory approval is secured.
Ithaca Energy;
Received approval from the UK government for its Field Development Plans approval for the Stella and Harrier Fields in the Central North Sea. The joint development of the fields will involve the drilling of subsea horizontal wells tied back to the FPF-1 floating production unit, with the export of processed hydrocarbons to nearby oil and gas transportation pipelines.
Kea Petroleum;
Has struck oil with its 100% owned Puka 1 well. Kea said the well had reached its planned target depth of 1550m on time and within budget and that a 40m interval near 1400m depth, contained several Mt Messenger reservoir quality sands, with a net to gross sand ratio over the interval of approximately 20%. Independent petrophysical analyses of electric logs indicate a minimum of 4.5m of moveable hydrocarbons in good reservoir quality sands. These are most likely a light oil, somewhat gassier towards the top of the interval. Both the depth at which these sands were encountered, and their extent, are in line with pre drill expectations, and at this stage Kea has not altered its original estimate of gross recoverable resource of one million barrels with a potential upside of up to three million barrels.
Lansdowne Oil & Gas;
Following interpretation of the 3D seismic, the Galley Head gas discovery is now interpreted by Lansdowne as having gross P50 in place volume of 30 BSCF GIIP with 25 BSCF potentially technically recoverable. This compares favourably with the historic RPS Competent Persons Report, February 2011 that calculated gross P50 in place volume of 7.1 bcf GIIP with some 5.3 BSCF considered technically recoverable. The Carrigaline gas discovery, lies outside the area covered by the 2011 3D seismic survey and remains unchanged from the February 2011 CPR which calculated gross P50 in place volume of 81.8 BSCF with P50 technically recoverable gas of 60.8 BSCF. Internal pre-drill P50 un-risked probabilistic estimates of the GIIP for the shallow Lower Cretaceous “A” Greensand and Upper/Middle Wealden gas prospects, covered by the 2011 3D seismic is calculated as 254 BSCF, with potential ultimate recoverable gas resources estimated internally as 199 BSCF. These figures compare to 324 BSCF and 239 BSCF respectively derived from the older 2D seismic and published in the CPR. Further interpretation is ongoing to determine if additional potential for oil exists at the basal Wealden levels in the licensed area. Amplitude anomalies, which Lansdowne considers may be an indicator of gas, have been identified on the 3D seismic at “A” Greensand and Wealden horizons on some prospects and may reduce the perceived risk ahead of any drilling.
Magnolia Petroleum;
Has acquired additional acreage in the proven and producing onshore hydrocarbon formations, the Mississippi and Woodford in Oklahoma. The move follows a series of acreage acquisitions in recent months and comes as Magnolia waits on the results of five wells that are currently at various stages of drilling and completion. Magnolia’s new acreage cover 1,191 net mineral acres, with an average 31% working interest and 24.8% net revenue interest, in the proven Mississippi Formation, Oklahoma. This includes the opportunity to participate in six potential wells.
Matra Petroleum;
Hit the headlines this week as the the oil & gas exploration/production company operating in Russia, won the backing of ex-TNK-BP chief executive Maxim Barskiy. Mr Barskiy will join the AIM minnow as a non-executive director and has pumped in £4.6 million of his own money for a 29.8% stake in the business. (Hooray) Speaking exclusively to the BMD site yesterday Matra’s geologist, Neil Hodgson, said, “It’s just brilliant”
Max Petroleum;
Said that it has commenced drilling the ASK-J1 development well in the Asanketken Field in Block E. Total depth of the well will be approximately 1,370 metres, targeting Jurassic reservoirs.
Oilex;
Updated on operations at the Cambay-76H horizontal well in the Cambay Field, onshore Gujarat, India. Milling and clean out of the first six fracture stimulation stages to a depth of 2,581 metres measured depth has been completed. Of the two remaining stages, one has been partially opened where a significant flow of fracture stimulation sand was encountered indicating the existence of a higher pressure environment. As a consequence, it is now expected that the final stage should open as the well is flowed back during the clean-up phase. Accordingly milling operations have now been discontinued. The large volume of fracture sand mentioned above has locked up the milling assembly and caused the drill pipe to part at a depth of about 600 metres. The drill pipe is being repaired & the well will be circulated to reduce the volume of sand within the well bore prior to pulling the milling assembly out of the well & conditioning the well for flow to surface & production testing.
President Petroleum;
Informed the market this week that Well DP-1002 at the Dos Puntitas field in its Puesto Guardian concession has now spudded. It is estimated that drilling will take some 45 days. The well has been planned to intersect the same intervals and at a similar structural elevation to Well DP-1001. Testing of DP-1001 will commence this week. As each of the A5, A6 and limestone intervals are being separately tested, President will make a further announcement once the result of all intervals is completed, estimated to be up to 21 days. The Company continues to anticipate that full production from DP-1001 will have commenced by the end of April.
Range Resources;
A mixed BAG OF news from the ongoing drilling work on the Shabeel well in Puntland, Somalia, which is being carried out by their joint venture operator, Horn Petroleum Corp. While the well has shown signs of oil and gas, investors are being made to wait on the final results as drilling continues. Shabeel well is currently at a depth of 2703 metres and has just completed the setting of the 9 5/8” casing. The well drilled through primarily tight limestones and shales of Lower Tertiary to Upper Cretaceous age and encountered a 355 metre section of Upper Cretaceous sands and shales of the Tisje/Jesomma Formations at a depth of approximately 1660 metres. The sands in this interval exhibited both oil and gas shows and petrophysical analysis of downhole electrical logs indicates a potential pay zone of between 12 and 20 metres in the section. Attempts to sample formation fluids using a wireline formation tester were not successful and thus the zone will require cased hole testing to confirm whether they are oil bearing. Mean-while Range also announced its Trinidad initial 21 well program continues to make significant progress with three of the Company rigs now fully operational. The QUN 119 / QUN 120 and QUN 122 wells have all been successfully drilled and logged and are in the process of being brought into production. QUN 121 now has a drilled surface hole and cemented surface casing.
Roxi Petroleum;
Updated on operations on its Galaz Contract Area. Well NK-10. Tests have revealed high water content with only minor gas and oil film shows. Accordingly, no further tests are planned for NK-10 and accordingly NK-10 will now be plugged and abandoned. Exploration and appraisal work on NW Konys will continue with production from the Galaz Contract Area currently running at the rate of 160 bopd.
Solo Oil;
April 11, 2012 – Calgary, Alberta – Reef Resources Ltd. reports that petrophysical analysis has been finalized on the North Airport #1 well which reached total depth of 609 metres on March 29, 2012. Advanced petrophysical evaluation performed by Houston based Nutech Energy Alliance indicates the presence of 63 metres of net hydrocarbon pay. This is the first well to be drilled on the North Airport reef identified by Company seismic. (See Aminex for Ntorya1 update)
Valiant Petroleum;
Reported that the Cladhan South exploration prospect located in Block 210/29c in the UK Northern North Sea will be plugged and abandoned.
Wessex Exploration;
Company is no longer in an offer period. As previously announced, having completed the initial shareholder consultations, the Board are of the view that the approach of 10 pence per ordinary share undervalues the Company and was inadequate to secure their support for any offer which Total might consider at this level.
