Cairn Energy PLC Greenland Operational Update

RNS Number : 0986O

Cairn Energy PLC

13 September 2011

 



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                   13 September 2011

CAIRN ENERGY PLC ("Cairn")

Greenland Operational Update

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

Gamma-1 Well: Eqqua Block, West Disko Area

The Gamma-1 exploration well, drilled by the Ocean Rig Corcovado drill ship, located in 1,520 metres (m) of water and 294 kilometres (km) from Aasiaat, in the Eqqua Block in the West Disko area has reached total depth (TD) and preparations are under way to plug and abandon the well. The well had been targeted to test a deep water Tertiary basin floor fan located 100km down dip from the T8-1 well where biogenic and thermogenic gas had been encountered in 2010.

The Gamma-1 well intersected the prognosed basin floor fan at the anticipated depth, although no reservoir or hydrocarbon shows were encountered in the interval.

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 293m and approximately 365km offshore Aasiaat, in the Napariaq Block is currently drilling ahead.  The Delta-1 well is aiming to intersect Cretaceous sediments in a large structural closure beneath the Tertiary volcanic interval in which oil shows were encountered in the Alpha-1 well drilled in 2010.  The well has so far encountered several hundred metres of Tertiary volcanic section, which is thicker than anticipated and with only minor hydrocarbon indications.  A further update will be made later this month, once the well reaches TD.

AT7-1 Well: Atammik Block, South Ungava Area 

Following completion of the operations on the Delta-1 Well, the Leiv Eiriksson is scheduled to move south 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.

Fifth Well: AT2 Prospect: Atammik Block, South Ungava Area

Once operations on the Gamma-1 well are complete, the Ocean Rig Corcovado is scheduled to move 597km south, to the Atammik Block, to drill the AT2 prospect as a fifth well in the 2011 exploration drilling campaign.

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

Simon Thomson, Chief Executive, said:

"The full results of the Gamma-1 well and the update from the Delta-1 well will be reviewed in the context of all the data gathered during the Greenland exploration campaign.

The rigs are scheduled to move south to drill the final two wells of the programme on the Atammik block.  We remain focussed on the potential of our multi-basin position in Greenland."

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 and Nuuk.

Cairn in Greenland

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

Ø Cairn has plans to drill up to four or possibly five wells offshore Greenland in summer 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 eleven 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 two to date by Cairn Energy in 2011.

For further information on Cairn see www.cairnenergy.com

 

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