Celtic Sea Portfolio Update

RNS Number : 3940P

Lansdowne Oil & Gas plc

18 February 2016

 

Lansdowne Oil & Gas plc

Celtic Sea Portfolio Update

18 February 2016

Lansdowne Oil & Gas ("Lansdowne" or "the Company"), the independent oil and gas company focussed on offshore Ireland, notes Providence Resources release today regarding the Celtic Sea which  provides an update on Lansdowne's licences in the Celtic Sea offshore the south coast of Ireland.

Barryroe oil field, North Celtic Sea Basin (Lansdowne 20%, Providence 80%, Operator)  

·     Farm-out discussions continue with third parties

·     A drilling proposal from an alliance of contractors under a risk-sharing model is also under  consideration:

o  Alliance consists of a major rig operator, drilling management and well service company

o  Latest cost estimate for the drilling of  an appraisal well is c. £16 million

·     Evaluation of the upper gas bearing C-Sand reservoir at Barryroe confirms significant productivity and resource potential across the eastern portion of SEL 1/11 & the southern portion of OPL 1

o  This reservoir interval was tested in the 48/24-10z well, c. 45 ft above the main Barryroe basal Wealden A-Sand oil reservoir. 

o  Modelled vertical well initial production rates of up to c.30 MMSCFGD

o  GIIP of up to c.400 BSCF

·     Discussions have commenced and technical evaluation is ongoing regarding potential development synergies with owners of existing gas production infrastructure

Helvick oil discovery, North Celtic Sea Basin (Lansdowne 9%, Providence 72.5%, Operator)

•      2 year Lease Undertaking granted by the Irish government with effect from 1^st March 2016 to allow for evaluation of low cost development options

•      As previously announced the award of the Lease Undertaking triggers a staged 50% farm-in by Marginal Field Development Company Limited ("MFDevCo", formerly known as ABT Oil & Gas Limited ) with an agreed work programme for staged equity participation:

o  10% initial working interest assignment to MFDevCo, subject to Ministerial consent;

o  Further equity assignment (up to 40%) based on agreed work programme and receipt of Petroleum Lease and approval of Plan of Development

•      In 2010, Providence entered into an agreement to assign a 10% working interest in the Helvick Field to Lansdowne Celtic Sea Limited ("Lansdowne"). Now that the Lease Undertaking has been awarded, this assignment can be completed and with the initial phase farm-in by MFDevco, Lansdowne will be assigned a 9% interest, subject to Ministerial consent.

•      Assuming completion of all phases of the farm-in by MFDevCo, and the completion of the assignment to Lansdowne, the revised equity ownership for Helvick would be MFDevCo (50.0%), Providence (31.2%), Atlantic Petroleum (9.2%), Lansdowne (5.0%) & Sosina Exploration (4.6%)

For further information please contact:

Lansdowne Oil & Gas plc Steve Boldy Richard Slape	[phone]
Cantor Fitzgerald Europe Sarah Wharry David Porter	[phone]

Qualified Person Review

This release has been reviewed by Stephen Boldy, Chief Executive of Lansdowne, who is a petroleum geologist with 35 years' experience in petroleum exploration and management. Dr Boldy has consented to the inclusion of the technical information in this release in the form and context in which it appears.

Notes to editors:

About Lansdowne

Lansdowne Oil & Gas (LOGP.LN) is a North Celtic Sea focussed, oil and gas exploration and appraisal company quoted on the AIM market and head quartered in Dublin.

Lansdowne holds extensive acreage in the North Celtic Sea Basin, including a 20% stake in Exploration Licence SEL1/11 which contains the Barryroe oil field.

For more information on Lansdowne, please refer to www.lansdowneoilandgas.com

ABOUT BARRYROE

Barryroe, located in the North Celtic Sea Basin, off the south coast of Ireland, has had six wells successfully drilled on the structure.  Hydrocarbons have been logged in all six wells, with flow test results from four wells.  Four wells were drilled in the 1970's by Esso with a further appraisal well drilled in 1990 by Marathon Oil.  The sixth well was drilled by Providence in 2011/12. The oil is light (43^o API) with a wax content of c. 17-20%. The successfully tested reservoir sands are of Cretaceous Middle and Lower Wealden age located between c. 4,500' TVDSS and 7,550' TVDSS.  The field is covered by both 2D and 3D seismic, the latter which was acquired in 2011.

Audited (NSAI/RPS) on block resources amount to 1.048 billion barrels in place, with an estimated P50 recoverable resources of 311 MMBO (plus associated gas). A further 778 MMBO barrels in place have been identified in incremental sands, though these sands have yet to be tested.

ABOUT C SAND RESOURCES

The C-Sand gas reservoir interval was originally identified by the Marathon/Esso 48/24-2 & 48/24-3 wells, which were previously drilled on the east flank of the Barryroe oil accumulation.  This reservoir interval was also subsequently encountered and tested in the Providence operated 48/24-10z well, c. 45 ft above the main Barryroe basal Wealden A-Sand oil reservoir.  The 48/24-10z well data indicates that the C-Sand reservoir, if drilled with zero skin and completed with production style tubing, could potentially flow at initial rates of up to c. 30 MMSCFGD.  New mapping, based on both 2D and 3D seismic data, together with the aforementioned well data, delivers a gas initially in place (GIIP) estimate of up c. 400 BSCF within the C-Sand gas reservoir in the eastern section of SEL 1/11 and the southern portion of OPL 1. 

ABOUT HELVICK

Helvick lies in block 49/9 in the North Celtic Sea Basin, off the south coast of Ireland and is situated in c. 80 metres water depth being c. 36 km off the coast.  The Helvick discovery well, 49/9-2, was first drilled in 1983 and flowed at a cumulative rate of approx. 9,900 BOPD and 7.5 MMSCFGD.  Three appraisal wells were subsequently drilled in the late 1980's to delineate the field.  In 2000, Providence drilled the 49/9-6Z well which was tested at rates of approx. 5,200 BOPD.  The estimated STOIIP is 9.4 MMBO, with additional mapped leads identified, such as an up thrown terrace play and stratigraphic plays, which have potentially higher volumes totalling 52 MMBO STOIIP.  Providence's previous work had confirmed that there are a number of low cost development scenarios which could allow for the commercial development of the Helvick oil field with a c. two production plateau rate of c. 5,000 BOPD.  The preferred development concept could involve the re-use of two suspended wells on the field as an injector/producer pair which would recover c. 3 MMBO.

 

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