30th May 2014 07:00
Dublin
30 May 2014
Petroceltic International Plc
Operations Update - Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Romania and Egypt
Petroceltic International plc ("Petroceltic" or "the Company"), the independent oil and gas exploration company focused on the Middle East, North Africa, Mediterranean and Black Sea regions, announces an update on its operations in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Romania and Egypt.
Kurdistan Region of Iraq:The Shakrok-1 well on the Shakrok licence (Petroceltic 16%, Hess (Operator) 64% and the Kurdistan Regional Government 20%) reached its total depth of 3,538 meters on 30 March 2014. As previously announced, the joint venture partnership agreed to carry out Drill Stem Tests (DSTs) over four zones of interest in the Jurassic interval. The final two DSTs in this program have now been completed in the Adaiyah and Mus formations but did not flow hydrocarbons to surface.
In respect of the Dinarta licence (Petroceltic 16%, Hess (Operator) 64% and the Kurdistan Regional Government 20%), drilling preparations are at an advanced stage, with the Parker Rig 247 almost rigged-up at the Shireen-1 well location. Drilling is scheduled to commence in early June and the well is expected to take around 150 days to reach its planned total depth. The well is targeting oil in both the Jurassic and Triassic formations, with gross mean unrisked prospective resources of 706 MMbbls*.
Romania: The Muridava-1 exploration well on the Muridava (EX-27) licence (Petroceltic 40%, Operator, Sterling Resources 40%, Petromar 20%) has been drilled to a total depth of 2,747 meters but failed to encounter commercial quantities of hydrocarbons in the primary Eocene, Paleocene and Upper Cretaceous reservoir targets. The well is currently being plugged and abandoned and the rig will be demobilised from the location.
Egypt: The South Dikirnis-1 exploration well (Petroceltic, Operator, 100%) has reached a total depth of 2,895 metres. The well was targeting a stratigraphic trap in the Miocene formation, to the south of the producing West Dikirnis field. Although high quality sandstone reservoirs were encountered in the Miocene, open hole log analysis indicates that the reservoir interval is water bearing.
Brian O'Cathain, Chief Executive of Petroceltic, commented:
"The outcome of these exploration wells is disappointing but does provide a significant amount of information that will greatly help decision making around future activity on these licences. We now look forward to drilling the Shireen-1 well on the Dinarta concession as the next well in our 2014 drilling programme."
Ends
For further information, please contact:
Brian O' Cathain /Tom Hickey, Petroceltic International Tel: +353 (1) 421 8300
Philip Dennis / Rollo Crichton-Stuart,
Pelham Bell Pottinger Tel: +44 (20) 7861 3919
Joe Murray / Joe Heron, Murray Consultants Tel: +353 (1) 498 0300
John Frain / Roland French, Davy Tel: +353 (1) 679 6363
Dr. Dermot Corcoran, Head of Exploration, Petroceltic International plc, and the qualified person as defined in the AIM Note for Mining and Oil and Gas Companies, June 2009, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this announcement. Dr. Corcoran has a B.Sc in Geology, a M.Sc. in Geophysics, and a Masters degree in Business Administration, all from the National University of Ireland, Galway. He also holds a Ph.D in Geology from Trinity College, Dublin. Dr. Corcoran has over 20 years experience in oil & gas exploration and production, and has previously worked at ExxonMobil, the Petrofina Group, and Statoil.
*706 MMbbls oil is the Mean unrisked Gross Prospective Oil Resources for the Shireen prospect in the DeGolyer & MacNaughton Competent Persons Report of July 2012 for Petroceltic International plc.
Glossary
MMbbls = Million Barrels
Notes to Editors:
Petroceltic International plc is a leading Upstream Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Company, focused on the Middle East, North Africa, Mediterranean and Black Sea regions, and listed on the London Stock Exchange's AIM Market and the Irish Stock Exchange's ESM Market. The Company has production, exploration and development assets in Algeria, Egypt, Bulgaria, Romania, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Italy and Greece.
Related Shares:
PCI.L