Horse Hill Update

RNS Number : 6228Q

Alba Mineral Resources PLC

22 October 2019

 

Alba Mineral Resources plc

("Alba" or the "Company")

Horse Hill Oil Field: HH-2 Pilot Completed, HH-2z Horizontal Trajectory Underway

Alba Mineral Resources plc (AIM: ALBA), the diversified mineral exploration and development company, is pleased to announce that it has received the following update from UK Oil & Gas Plc ("UKOG"), the majority owner of Horse Hill Developments Limited ("HHDL"), the operator of Horse Hill licences PEDL 137 and PEDL 246 in which Alba has an 11.765% interest:

-    Following the successful completion of the Horse Hill-2 ("HH-2") Portland pilot well, Horse Hill-2z ("HH-2z") horizontal drilling operations are now underway. HH-2z aims to deliver a circa 3,200 ft horizontal section wholly within the Portland reservoir's most oil productive zone, the presence and quality of which has been further defined by the pilot well's coring and electric logging programmes as reported by UKOG.

-    HH-2/2z, the first horizontal well in the field's Portland oil pool, is designed to be retained as a future production well and to deliver flow rates significantly higher than the rates achieved from the HH-1 vertical Portland discovery well. Following a planned extensive HH-2z EWT campaign, both HH-2z Portland and the HH-1 Kimmeridge well are expected to be put into long term production by the end of 2019.

-    HH-2z operations:

o  HH-2z operations were initiated through the pilot well's 9⅝" casing at the planned "kick-off" point 1320 ft below rig floor, immediately above cement plugs isolating the Portland reservoir below. The well is now building angle towards the horizontal within 8½" diameter hole and will continue down to a drilled depth of around 2300 ft, just above the Portland target zone. This section will then be cased and cemented with a 7" liner.

o  The well's trajectory will then continue within 6" diameter hole, entering the Portland target zone approximately 850 ft to the southeast of the HH-2 surface location. HH-2z's expected total measured depth is around 5900 ft from rig floor, of which c. 3200 ft is planned within the reservoir's sweet-spot. The well is expected to reach its total depth around mid-November.

o  To ensure the borehole remains wholly within the Portland sweet spot, HH-2z will be actively "geo-steered" during drilling to keep within a series of core and electric log-derived diagnostic geological markers delineating the zone's upper and lower boundaries.

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014.

Forward Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements relating to expected or anticipated future events and anticipated results that are forward-looking in nature and, as a result, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, such as general economic, market and business conditions, competition for qualified staff, the regulatory process and actions, technical issues, new legislation, uncertainties resulting from potential delays or changes in plans, uncertainties resulting from working in a new political jurisdiction, uncertainties regarding the results of exploration, uncertainties regarding the timing and granting of prospecting rights, uncertainties regarding the Company's or any third party's ability to execute and implement future plans, and the occurrence of unexpected events.  Actual results achieved may vary from the information provided herein as a result of numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors.

Qualified Person's Statement

The technical information contained in this announcement has been reviewed and approved by Feroz Sultan (B.Sc (Hons) Geology, M.Sc, Petroleum and Structural Geology, Karachi and M.Sc Petroleum Geology, Imperial College London), a petroleum geologist with over 45 years' experience in the management, exploration, development and production of oil and gas.

For further information, please contact:

Alba Mineral Resources plc George Frangeskides, Executive Chairman	[phone]
Cairn Financial Advisers LLP (Nomad)      James Caithie / Liam Murray	[phone]
First Equity Limited (Broker) Jason Robertson	[phone]
Yellow Jersey PR (Financial PR/ IR) Sarah Hollins/Harriet Jackson/Henry Wilkinson [e-mail]	[phone]

Alba's Project and Investment Portfolio

Project (commodity)	Location	Ownership
Mining Projects
Amitsoq (graphite)	Greenland	90%
Clogau (gold)	Wales	90%
Inglefield (copper, cobalt, gold)	Greenland	100%
Limerick (zinc-lead)	Ireland	100%
Melville Bay (iron ore)	Greenland	51%
TBS (ilmenite)	Greenland	100%
Oil & Gas Investments
Brockham (oil)	England	5%
Horse Hill (oil)	England	11.765%

 

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