Cairn Energy PLC Greenland Operational Update

RNS Number : 0485P

Cairn Energy PLC

28 September 2011

 



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                   28 September 2011

CAIRN ENERGY PLC ("Cairn")

Greenland Operational Update

The following operational update relates to Cairn's exploration drilling campaign offshore Greenland.

Delta-1 Well: Napariaq Block, West Disko Area

The Delta-1 exploration well, drilled by the Leiv Eiriksson semi-submersible drilling rig, located in a water depth of 293metres (m) and approximately 365 kilometres (km) offshore Aasiaat, in the Napariaq Block is being plugged and abandoned.  The Delta-1 well which was targeting the Cretaceous Section beneath the Tertiary volcanic, reached Total Depth (TD) at 2,977m still within Tertiary volcanics without encountering hydrocarbon shows.

AT2-1 Well: Atammik Block, South Ungava Area

The Ocean Rig Corcovado has moved 597km south from the Eqqua Block, to the Atammik Block, and has commenced drilling the AT2-1 well, located in a water depth of 1,045m and approximately 198km offshore Nuuk, as a fifth well in the 2011 exploration drilling campaign.   

AT7-1 Well: Atammik Block, South Ungava Area 

The Leiv Eiriksson will move south shortly and will start operations to re-enter the AT7-1 well in the Atammik block, located in 909m of water and 198km offshore Nuuk, and drill to the planned TD.  This well was temporarily suspended to allow the Leiv Eiriksson to drill the Delta-1 well to optimise the drilling time in the West Disko area.

Further updates will be provided whenever a well is at TD and operations are complete.

Enquiries:

Analysts / Investors

Simon Thomson, Chief Executive

Mike Watts, Deputy Chief Executive

Jann Brown, Managing Director and CFO

David Nisbet, Corporate Affairs                                                                     Tel: [phone]

Media

Patrick Handley, David Litterick

Brunswick Group LLP                                                                                 Tel: [phone]

NOTES TO EDITORS

Cairn Energy PLC

Ø Cairn Energy PLC ("Cairn") is an Edinburgh-based oil and gas exploration and production company listed on the London Stock Exchange. Following the IPO of Cairn India in January 2007, there are two separate parts of the business:

·      Cairn India Limited ("Cairn India") is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange of India and has interests in a total of 11 acreage blocks in India and Sri Lanka. Cairn retains a 52.11% interest in Cairn India (on an un-diluted basis).

·      Capricorn Oil Limited ("Capricorn"), a subsidiary of Cairn is focused on exploration. Capricorn has assets in, Nepal, Northern India, Greenland, Albania and Spain.

Ø "Cairn" where referred to in this release means Cairn Energy PLC and/or its subsidiaries (including Cairn India and Capricorn), as appropriate.

Ø "Capricorn" where referred to in this release means Capricorn Oil Limited and/or its subsidiaries as appropriate.

Ø Cairn has focused its activities on the geographic region of South Asia, which has already resulted in a significant number of oil and gas discoveries.  In particular, Cairn made a major oil discovery (Mangala) in Rajasthan in the north west of India at the beginning of 2004. Cairn has now made more than 20 discoveries in Rajasthan block RJ-ON-90/1. Production from Rajasthan started in August 2009 and is expected to reach the approved plateau of 175,000 bopd.

Ø Cairn Energy PLC (including Capricorn) is run from Edinburgh with operational offices in Kathmandu, Nuuk and Spain.

Cairn in Greenland

Ø Cairn through its subsidiary, Capricorn, operates 11 blocks offshore Greenland.

Ø Cairn is drilling up to five wells offshore Greenland during 2011.  Two state-of-the-art rigs are being used for the drilling and exploration programme - the Ocean Rig Corcovado, a sixth generation drill-ship, and the Leiv Eiriksson, a fifth generation semi-submersible.

Ø Up to fourteen vessels are supporting the drilling programme.  They provide cover for emergency response, rig stand-by, ice management, anchor handling, oil spill response and re-supply operations.

Ø Cairn has carried out extensive Environmental and Social Impact Assessments to identify how potential environmental and social impacts of the drilling programme can be avoided or mitigated. 

Ø Only twelve exploration wells have been drilled in offshore Greenland to date, five of which were drilled in the 1970s, one in 2000, three in 2010 by Cairn Energy and three to date by Cairn Energy in 2011.

For further information on Cairn see www.cairnenergy.com

 

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