Rachel North 14/15-2 - Oil di

RNS Number : 2399X

Rockhopper Exploration plc

02 December 2010

 

For immediate release: 2 December 2010

Rockhopper Exploration plc

("Rockhopper" or the "Company")

Rachel North 14/15-2 - Oil discovery

Rockhopper Exploration plc (AIM: RKH), the North Falkland Basin oil and gas exploration company, notes the announcement by Desire Petroleum plc (the "Operator") that the 14/15-2 Rachel North well, in which Rockhopper holds a 7.5% working interest, has reached a total depth of 3052 metres.

Preliminary data collected indicate that this well is an oil discovery. The Operator has run an initial suite of wireline logs and this together with the drilling data indicate that the well encountered a 349 metres gross interval from 2621 metres to 2970 metres of sands and shales with hydrocarbons, of which 57 metres is net pay in multiple zones. The thickest zone is 8 metres thick with an average porosity of 20%. Other zones are thinly bedded and lower porosity but require further analysis from additional wireline logs to establish reservoir potential.

The Operator now intends to complete the wireline logging and wireline sampling programme to obtain more information on the reservoir quality, the hydrocarbon saturations and the fluid type to assess the significance of this discovery. Further information will be released in due course.

The completion of the drilling of the Rachel North 14/15-2 well will complete Rockhopper's earn-in on Desire's licences PL03 and PL04 under the terms of the farm-in agreement and result in Rockhopper holding a 7.5% working and economic interest in those licences.

Sam Moody, Chief Executive of Rockhopper, commented,

"These preliminary results from Rachel North, when combined with Rockhopper's Sea Lion oil discovery, are encouraging for the basin."

Subsurface support is provided to the Operator by Senergy (GB) Ltd and the results reported today are based on the work of the Senergy operations team. Rockhopper has not completed its own technical work on the outcome to date.

Enquiries:

Rockhopper Exploration plc

Sam Moody - Chief Executive

Tel. [phone] (via M: Communications)

M: Communications

Patrick d'Ancona or Ben Simons

Tel. [phone]

Canaccord Genuity Limited

Charles Berkeley / Henry Fitzgerald-O'Connor

Tel. [phone]

Notes to Editors

Rockhopper was established in February 2004 with a strategy to invest in and carry out an offshore oil exploration programme to the north of the Falkland Islands. The Company floated on AIM in August 2005 and holds a 100 per cent. interest in four offshore production licences: PL023, PL024, PL032 and PL033 which cover approximately 3,800 sq. km. Rockhopper has also farmed in (7.5% working interest) to licences PL003 and PL004, which are operated by Desire Petroleum. These licences have been granted by the Falkland Islands government.

An extensive work programme has been carried out over a number of years on the licences operated by Rockhopper. This has included 2D and 3D Seismic and Controlled Source Electromagnetic Mapping (CSEM). In February 2010, the Ocean Guardian drilling rig arrived in Falkland waters to carry out a multi-well drilling campaign. Rockhopper drilled an exploration well on its Sea Lion prospect during April and May 2010, the result of which was the first oil discovery and Contingent Oil Resource in the North Falkland Basin. The Sea Lion discovery was successfully tested during September 2010 and was the first oil to flow to surface in Falkland Islands waters. Rockhopper has contracted seismic vessels MV Polarcus Asima and Nadia to carry out a 3D seismic survey, beginning December 2010, over areas of licences PL024, PL032 and PL033 which were not previously defined by 3D, as well as adjacent areas.

Rockhopper Exploration plc www.rockhopperexploration.co.uk

Desire Petroleum plc's statement was approved by Dr Ian Duncan of Desire Petroleum plc, who is a Fellow of the Geological Society, Chartered Geologist, and a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists with over 35 years experience in petroleum exploration and management.

 

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