Shoats Creek Drilling Update

RNS Number : 7644T

Aminex PLC

04 October 2010

 



AMINEX PLC 

SHOATS CREEK DRILLING UPDATE

Aminex PLC ("Aminex" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update on its Shoats Creek exploration programme.

Shareholders will recall that the Olympia Minerals 10-1 well ("OM10-1") was drilled to target depth in August.  On the basis of encouraging well logs, a decision was taken to test the Upper Wilcox sands.

El Paso Exploration and Production LP and partners ("El Paso"), the operator of OM10-1, subsequently recommended that greater productivity could be achieved by fracture treatment of individual formations ('frac-treatment').  As each of five zones has had to be frac-treated separately and each zone then flow-tested prior to perforating and frac-treating the next zone up, this has become a relatively long process.

Four of the five zones selected have now been frac-treated and the fifth is likely to be frac-treated during the next 7 days, always subject to equipment availability and unanticipated operational delays.

Once the final stage of the frac-treatment programme is completed, a decision will be made on which zones will be initially produced and which (if any) will be left behind-pipe for future production.

Optimised production will then commence and the details will be announced to shareholders. Until the test programme has been completed no further announcements will be made.

Aminex chairman Brian Hall commented: "The Wilcox sands underlying Shoats Creek have for a long time been a significant component of our 2P reserves in the USA and we are very pleased that these are now being proved up with the drill bit.  Further drilling in the Wilcox is likely."

For further information:

Aminex PLC                                        [phone]

Brian Hall - Chairman

Pelham Bell Pottinger                   [phone] or [phone]

Archie Berens

BACKGROUND TO CURRENT WORK AT SHOATS CREEK

·     In July 2010 Aminex entered into a unitisation agreement (the "Unit") with El Paso for exploration of deep Wilcox sands.  The Unit covers 960 acres, approximately half of which lie in Aminex's 1,500 acres lease area at Shoats Creek, Louisiana and half in El Paso's acreage directly to the west.  Under the agreement, Aminex and El Paso will jointly explore the Wilcox sands in the Unit on a 50-50 basis with each party paying its 50% share of the costs.

·     The Unit covers prospects deeper than 10,000 feet and therefore excludes the Cockfield and Frio sands which are also present in Aminex's part of the Unit. El Paso is the designated operator of the Unit.

·     The presence of oil-bearing Wilcox sands in Aminex's part of the unit was established through a well drilled by a previous operator in 1988 but this was never tested.  However, newly interpreted and mapped 3D seismic data enabled a promising drillable Wilcox structural prospect to be identified.

·     With a defined prospect and a suitable and available rig close at hand, the Olympia Minerals 10-1 well ("OM10-1") was drilled to a total vertical depth of 12,240 feet (measured depth 12,400 feet), encountering and logging potential hydrocarbon bearing sands in both the Cockfield and Wilcox formations, as announced to shareholders on 19 August 2010.

·     The logs of OM10-1 were extremely encouraging and a decision to test the Upper Wilcox sands was taken.  El Paso has extensive experience of drilling in Wilcox sands and, due to the laminated nature of these sands which was apparent from electric logs, recommended that greater productivity could be achieved by frac-treatment of the individual formations. 

 

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