Trinidad Progress Update

RNS Number : 4292E

Predator Oil & Gas Holdings PLC

04 July 2019

 

Predator Oil & Gas Holdings Plc / Index: LSE / Epic: PRD / Sector: Oil & Gas

Predator Oil & Gas Holdings Plc

("Predator" or the "Company" and together with its subsidiaries "the Group")

  Progress Update Trinidad - Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery ("C02 EOR")

And Competent Person's Report 

HIGHLIGHTS

·    Certificate of Environmental Clearance issued

·    Well completion design updated to potentially reduce costs and enhance economics

·    Well workovers AT-4 and AT-5X to begin shortly

·    CPR gives contingent, development pending, resources of 5.3 to 8.9 MM bo

Predator Oil & Gas Holdings Plc (PRD), the Jersey-based Oil and Gas Company, today provides an update on its progress onshore Trinidad.

Environmental Certificate

The Environmental Management Authority ("EMA") has issued a Certificate of Environmental Clearance ("CEC") to Fram Exploration Trinidad Ltd. ("FRAM"), the operator of the Inniss-Trinity field and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Columbus Energy Resources PLC, approving the injection of locally-sourced carbon dioxide ("C02 EOR").  The CO2 will be provided through arrangements developed and progressed exclusively by Predator. Subject to further consultations with Heritage Petroleum Company Ltd. and obtaining requisite consents, permits and approvals from the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries C02 EOR operations can commence in the AT-4 Block within the Inniss-Trinity oil field.

Operational Planning

During the period awaiting the issue of the CEC Predator has maintained a very low level of expenditure which has been targeted at achieving an optimum well completion design for the AT-4 and AT-5X wells. The focus has been to potentially isolate downhole individual Herrera reservoir sands for a C02 injectivity test to determine the extent to which reservoir sands can be separately repressured and what maximum initial oil flow rate can be achieved for comparison with the Base Line Production Rate for these wells.

The new completion design will concentrate the C02 injection into only the most productive sands to potentially accelerate the rate of reservoir pressure build-up and reduce the volumes of C02 required to achieve initial oil production. This should enhance project economics, if the operational plan is successfully executed and the reservoirs perform according to the desk-top reservoir engineering models, and underpin the guidance on potential net-backs per barrel as previously announced despite the lower oil prices currently being experienced.

Data collected from monitoring the AT-4 and AT-5X wells during injection and production will help assess the potential for reservoir communication and are required for planning the upscaling of operations to a full-field C02 EOR Project. 

Next Step

FRAM will shortly use a workover rig to survey downhole the AT-4 and AT-5X wells to ensure there are no obstructions that would prevent Predator's downhole completion design from being installed across the Herrera sand interval chosen for the first injectivity and production test.

A further operational update will be issued once the downhole well survey results are available.

Competent Person's Report

A Competent Person's Report ("CPR") contingent resources audit has been carried out by SLR Consulting (Ireland) Ltd. ("SLR") taking into account the new reservoir engineering forecasts and operational plan for the proposed AT-4 Block Pilot C02 EOR Project.

The following table summarises the range of total gross and net audited Inniss-Trinity contingent resources:

Table 1           Contingent Resources Inniss-Trinity

	Gross
Inniss-Trinity Field	Low Estimate	Best Estimate	High Estimate	Operator	Chance of Commerciality
OOIP (MM bo)	89	68	89	FRAM
Recovery Factor	6%	10%	10%	FRAM
Gross Contingent Resources (MM bo)	5.3	6.8	8.9	FRAM	C02 EOR Development Pending

Predator has the exclusive right to purchase FRAM through a Share Purchase Agreement on or before 31^st December 2019 for US$4.2 MM.

If the C02 EOR Pilot is successful FRAM will pay Predator 100% of the Market Value (less agreed costs and deductions) of any enhanced crude oil production until full cost recovery, following which net proceeds will be split 50/50.

Paul Griffiths, Chief Executive of Predator, commented:

We are pleased to have successfully achieved another important milestone by obtaining the Certificate of Environmental Clearance for the C02 EOR Pilot Project. Shareholders will understand that compliance with the very highest environmental standards is an important pre-requisite for the fossil fuel industry to enable projects to progress to the operational phase. Operational planning is progressing well and well workovers will commence shortly. The new CPR provides an estimate of the Contingent Resources for the Inniss-Trinity field if the C02 EOR Pilot Project is successful. In this instance, and on an assumption that Predator exercises its option to buy FRAM, Predator would be acquiring resources for significantly less than US$1.0/brl.   

Enquiries:

Predator Oil & Gas Holdings plc Paul Griffiths, Chief Executive Officer Sarah Cope, Non-Executive Chairman	Tel:  [phone]
Brandon Hill Capital Jonathan Evans / Oliver Stansfield	Tel:  [phone]

Follow us also on VOX Market https://www.voxmarkets.co.uk/ This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7                   of the Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 on market abuse

Notes to Editors:

Predator is an oil and gas exploration company with the objective of participating with FRAM Exploration Trinidad Ltd. in further developing the remaining oil reserves in the producing Inniss Trinity oil field onshore Trinidad, primarily through the application of C02 EOR technology. Potential for cash flow exists by executing a Pilot Enhanced Oil Recovery project using locally-sourced carbon dioxide for injection into the oil reservoirs ("C02 EOR"). Near-term expansion and growth potential is focussed on upscaling the C02 EOR operations in the Inniss-Trinity oil field and potential acquisitions of assets suitable for C02 EOR development, subject to all necessary approvals. 

In addition, Predator also owns and operates exploration and appraisal assets in current licensing options offshore Ireland, for which Successor Authorisations have been applied for, adjoining Shell's Corrib gas field in the Slyne Basin on the Atlantic Margin and east of the Kinsale gas field and Barryroe oil field in the Celtic Sea. A Successor Authorisation has been granted for the Celtic Sea asset whilst the result of an application for a Frontier Exploration Licence over the Slyne Basin exploration asset is is pending.

Predator is operator of the Guercif Petroleum Agreement onshore Morocco which is initially prospective for Tertiary gas in prospects less than 10 kilometres from the Maghreb gas pipeline.

The Company has a highly experienced management team with a proven track record in the oil and gas industry.

 

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