19th Feb 2016 07:00
NU-OIL AND GAS PLC
AIM symbol: 'NUOG'
19 February 2016
NU-Oil and Gas plc
("NU-Oil" or "the Company")
Marginal Field Development Company Ltd (formerly ABT Oil and Gas Ltd) Farm-In to the Helvick Oil Field and Dunmore Oil Discovery
NU-Oil, the independent Oil and Gas Company, is pleased to provide an update regarding Marginal Field Development Company Ltd ("MFDevCo" formerly ABT Oil & Gas Limited), the oil and gas technology company in which NU-Oil has a 50% interest, and its farm-in to the Helvick oil field and the Dunmore oil discovery (collectively the "Discoveries"), located in Standard Exploration Licence 2/07 in the North Celtic Sea Basin offshore Ireland. The agreement was originally announced on 13 November 2013.
A two year Lease Undertaking in respect of both Discoveries has been granted by the Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources of Ireland, with effect from 1 March 2016 to allow for evaluation of low cost development options. The award of the Lease Undertaking triggers a staged 50% farm-in by MFDevCo, with an agreed work programme for staged equity participation:
· 10% initial working interest assignment to MFDevCo, subject to Ministerial consent;
· Further equity assignment (up to 40%) based on undertaking the agreed work programme and receipt of a Petroleum Lease from the Minister and the approval of any Plan of Development.
Nigel Burton, CEO of NU-Oil, commented:
'MFDevCo and the MFD Consortium's solutions have the potential to improve the commercial viability of fields and we look forward to them being utilised to advance Helvick and Dunmore for the benefit of all interest holders."
Helvick
The Helvick oil field is located in Block 49/9, some 36 kilometres off the south coast of Ireland. The Helvick discovery well, 49/9-2, was first drilled in 1983 and flowed at a cumulative rate of approximately 9,900 BOPD and 7.5 MMSCFGD. Three appraisal wells were subsequently drilled in the late 1980s to delineate the field. In 2000, Providence drilled the 49/9-6Z well which was tested at rates of approximately 5,200 BOPD. Further detailed analysis indicated that the Helvick reservoir is relatively small in size and, due to this small size and the low oil price at the time, the field was not deemed commercially viable. However, MFDevCo and the Partners now believe that Helvick is potentially commercial using MFDevCo and the MFD Consortium's new low cost development solutions.
Dunmore
The Dunmore discovery is located approximately 20 kilometres north of the Hook Head discovery in the Celtic Sea. The discovery well, 50/6-1, was drilled by the then Operator, Gulf Oil, in 1985/86 and flowed at a rate of approximately 2,100 BOPD of high quality (44º API) oil. During 2008, Providence drilled the 50/6-4 appraisal well on the Dunmore structure and, whilst the well failed to prove the lateral extent of the hydrocarbon bearing Upper Jurassic sands, a new oil bearing carbonate interval was intersected.
**ENDS**
Enquiries:
NU-Oil and Gas plc
Alan Minty, Executive Chairman Tel: + 44 161 817 7460
Nigel Burton, CEO Tel: +44 7785 234447
Beaufort Securities Limited Tel: +44 20 7382 8300
Jon Belliss
Elliot Hance
Cenkos Securities
Neil McDonald Tel: + 44 131 220 9771
Derrick Lee Tel: + 44 131 220 6939
St Brides Partners Limited Tel: +44 20 7236 1177
Elisabeth Cowell
Lottie Brocklehurst
www.nu-oilandgas.com
Note to Editors:
NU-Oil and Gas plc (NUOG) is an independent oil and gas company whose strategy is to build a diverse portfolio of assets with a strong emphasis on acquiring interests in stranded and marginal fields. These fields are producing or highly-appraised. NUOG will look to develop these assets utilising solutions delivered by Marginal Field Delivery Company ("MFDevCo" formerly ABT Oil and Gas Ltd) and the MFD Consortium, which can significantly improve the development economics of a project. This is also expected to enable the early booking of reserves.
Marginal Field Delivery Company (formerly ABT Oil and Gas Ltd) (www.mfdevco.com)
Marginal Field Delivery Company ('MFDevCo') is a joint venture between RMRI (www.rmri.co.uk) and NU-Oil and Gas plc Oil plc. It focuses on maximising recovery from the vast, undeveloped hydrocarbon resources contained within marginal fields worldwide, utilising appropriate re-deployable solutions to transform these undervalued assets. MFDevCo manages the entire lifecycle of marginal field projects from opportunity screening, suitability assessment and financing through engineering to production and decommissioning. The solutions developed can be used to:
· Realise the potential from marginal or stranded fields
· Extend the life of mature fields
· Rejuvenate fields with a previous or existing development solution that is currently sub-economic
· Defer decommissioning liabilities
· Provide early production systems
The Marginal Field Delivery Consortium www.mfdconsortium.com
The Marginal Field Delivery Consortium (the Consortium) is a collaborative partnership, established and led by MFDevCo, between upstream oil and gas industry specialists committed to developing hydrocarbon resources around the world which cannot be economically recovered using conventional methods. Through its members, The Consortium offers the technology and services required to deliver marginal oil and gas projects from project identification and concept selection through to operation and decommissioning, using cost-effective and re-deployable production solutions which transform the economics of marginal fields by reducing the development costs by up to 60% compared to using conventional solutions.
The Consortium is led by MFDevCo and also includes:
Arup - ACE platform and project management
Kongsberg - Control and automation systems for 'normally unattended' operations
Frames - Process and utility design for 'normally unattended' solutions
RMRI - Managing regulatory aspects of 'normally unattended' operations
Braemar ACM - Facility financing, yard broker and assistance with project acquisition
AGR - Drilling management and well design services
Apollo - NU-SIFT structural engineering
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