Rig Contract Signed

RNS Number : 3668G

Jersey Oil and Gas PLC

01 March 2018

 

01 March 2018

Jersey Oil and Gas plc

("Jersey Oil & Gas", "JOG" or the "Company")

Rig Contract Signed for Drilling of the "Verbier" Appraisal programme in Summer 2018

Jersey Oil & Gas (AIM: JOG), an independent upstream oil and gas company ‎focused on the UK Continental Shelf ("UKCS") region of the North Sea, is pleased to announce that Statoil (U.K.) Limited ("Statoil"), operator of the P.2170 (Blocks 20/5b & 21/1d) licence area (the "P.2170 licence"), has awarded contracts to Seadrill North Atlantic Drilling UK Ltd. and North Atlantic Norway Ltd. for the semi-submersible rig, West Phoenix, to drill a well on the Norwegian Continental Shelf followed by three wells on the UKCS. The West Phoenix rig will drill the Verbier appraisal well, with the possibility for a sidetrack well, on the P.2170 licence in the Central North Sea, as the first of Statoil's planned UKCS wells, in the summer of 2018.

The Verbier discovery, in which the Company holds an 18 per cent. interest, is located in Block 20/5b. Initial operator estimates of gross recoverable resources associated with the Verbier discovery are between 25 and 130 million barrels of oil equivalent ("mmboe") with an estimated mean of 69mmboe. The purpose of the planned appraisal well is to determine the potential volume range in the discovery.

Andrew Benitz, CEO of Jersey Oil & Gas, commented:

"We are very pleased to announce that Statoil has contracted the West Phoenix, a sixth generation semi-submersible drilling rig, being the same class of rig that drilled the Verbier discovery well last year, to drill the Verbier appraisal well this summer. Confirmation of this contract at competitive market rates is in line with our previously announced Capex expectations for 2018 and this appraisal campaign will help determine the potential of our exciting Verbier discovery. In parallel with the appraisal well programme on Verbier, we are continuing our exploration activities to fully evaluate the remaining prospectivity of the P.2170 licence area."

Enquiries:

Jersey Oil and Gas plc	Andrew Benitz, CEO	C/o Camarco: Tel: [phone]
Strand Hanson Limited	James Harris Matthew Chandler James Bellman	Tel: [phone]
Arden Partners plc	Chris Hardie Benjamin Cryer	Tel: [phone]
BMO Capital Markets	Jeremy Low Neil Haycock Tom Rider	Tel: [phone]
Camarco	Billy Clegg Georgia Edmonds  James Crothers	Tel: [phone]

Notes to Editors:

Jersey Oil & Gas is a UK E&P company focused on building a production-focused company in the North Sea. The Company owns an 18% interest in the P.2170 licence, Blocks 20/5b & 21/1d, Outer Moray Firth, in which the operator, Statoil (U.K.) Limited, owns a 70% interest and CIECO V&C (UK) Limited owns a 12% interest.

The Company plans to build a major production portfolio via acquisitions coinciding with the cyclical recovery in oil price and the opportune buying market available in the North Sea. The Company is involved in multiple sales processes and intends to draw on its management team's experience, knowledge and expertise to deliver shareholder value from its stated production acquisition strategy.

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014.

 

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