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Project Icewine - Field Trip Highlights

14th May 2015 07:00

88 ENERGY LIMITED - Project Icewine - Field Trip Highlights

88 ENERGY LIMITED - Project Icewine - Field Trip Highlights

PR Newswire

London, May 14

14 May 2015 Alaska Field Trip Highlights * Drilling permits are are on track post constructive meetings with State agencies * Exploration and appraisal success announced by regional peers in conventional plays enhances Project Icewine potential * Multiple rig options available for drilling prior to year end * Visual inspection indicates that drill site is in good condition / near rig ready * Good progress made on strategic funding / farmout process The Board of 88 Energy Limited ("88 Energy" or the "Company") provides thefollowing update based on a recent visit to Alaska. Permitting Progress During the week beginning 27th April 2015, the Project Icewine Joint Venture("PIJV") conducted meetings with representatives from seven State of Alaskaagencies and the North Slope Borough. All parties are engaging proactively inregards to taking the steps required to meet the target for drilling of theIcewine #1 well prior to year end. 88 Energy, through its local subsidiary, Accumulate Energy Alaska Inc.,continues to work with all agencies to ensure that it operates in a culturallyand environmentally sensitive manner. Figure 1: 2015 Winter Drilling Results by Peers (please refer to the pdfversion of this announcement available from the Company's website) Drilling Success Reported on the Slope Whilst in Alaska, there was excitement in the local oil community related tounconfirmed reports of drilling success during the recently completed winterseason. Subsequently, Repsol confirmed, in its latest earnings report, that ithad completed two successful appraisal wells and one successful explorationwell - all with positive production tests. 88 Energy is encouraged by Repsol'ssuccess and hopes to be able to provide more detail once it is made available. Two of the conventional plays being pursued by Repsol are thought to existwithin the Project Icewine acreage. Whilst the Repsol results are promising,the potential at Project Icewine will only be confirmed by 3D seismic anddrilling. Repsol's recent wells are located ~45 miles from the boundary of theProject Icewine acreage. There were also reports of delays experienced for other programs this winterdrilling season. It is understood that Great Bear was unable to meet itsschedule in regards to the drilling of the Talitha well, near to the ProjectIcewine acreage. The results from Great Bear's Alkaid well have not been madepublic at this stage. Multiple Rig Options Confirmed The Company engaged in discussions with several rig operators on the Slope andconfirmed rig availability over the Summer/Fall season. The Company looksforward to committing to the use of one of these rigs in the near-term. Figure 2: Photo of Pad (looking towards Dalton Highway from SE corner)(pleaserefer to the pdf version of this announcement available from the Company'swebsite) Visit to Site Confirms Suitability of Location for Drilling Operations Representatives of the Project Icewine Joint Venture made the short 90 minutecar journey from Prudhoe Bay to the Franklin Bluffs site. The Dalton Haul roadwas in good condition despite a recent, one in twenty-year, flooding event fromthe adjacent Sagavanirktok River that saw traffic halted for around two weeksin early April. Road access for drilling of the Icewine #1 exploration well isnot expected to be affected by plans to refurbish a section of the road thisSummer. Whilst all permits are not yet in place to drill at the existing gravel pad atFranklin Bluffs, the Company is confident that the location is suitable fordrilling operations. Discussions with permitting agencies have also confirmedthat the location is ideal as a proposed drilling site, being within theTransportation Corridor, on an existing pre-disturbed gravel pad, and adjacentto the Dalton Highway. Figure 3: Existing Gravel Pad LIDAR and Aerial View (please refer to the pdfversion of this announcement available from the Company's website) Funding / Farmout Discussions Progress The Company continues to make good progress on strategic funding / farmoutdiscussions and is currently engaged with multiple parties on this front. Moredetail will become available in the coming weeks. David Wall, 88 Energy's Managing Director, commented: "With the project movingforward at a cracking pace on all fronts, combined with the recent success byRepsol and the recovery in oil price, 88E and its shareholders could not bemuch better positioned. Drilling remains on track for prior to year end spud asstrategic funding/farm-out talks progressing concurrently with operationalactivity. We anticipate strong newsflow in the near term with severalsignificant milestones likely to be achieved." Project Icewine Highlights In November 2014, the Company entered into a binding agreement with BurgundyXploration (BEX) to acquire a significant working interest (87.5%, reducing to78% on spud of the first well on the project) in a large acreage position on amultiple objective, liquids rich exploration opportunity onshore Alaska, NorthAmerica, referred to as Project Icewine. 88 Energy, (through BEX their co-venture partner), was announced highest bidderon 90,720 acres in the November State lease sale for the North Slope of Alaskaon 20 November 2014. Post award of the acreage in Q2 2015 88 Energy will securea 99,360 gross contiguous acre position with 77,500 acres net to the Company.The primary term for the State leases is 10 years with no mandatoryrelinquishment and a low 16.5% royalty. Figure 4: Project Icewine Location(please refer to the pdf version of thisannouncement available from the Company's website) Generous exploration incentives are provided by the State of Alaska with up to85% of 2015 exploration expenditures refundable in cash, dropping to 75%mid-2016, and 35% thereafter. The primary objective is an untested, unconventional liquids-rich shale play ina prolific source rock, the HRZ shale,(Brookian Sequence), that co-sourced thelargest oil field in North America; the giant Prudhoe Bay Oil Field Complex.Internal modelling and analysis indicates that Project Icewine is located in ahigh liquids vapour phase sweetspot analogous to those encountered in otherTier 1 shale plays e.g. the Eagle Ford, Texas. Project Icewine has conventional play potential within the same Brookianpetroleum system and shallow to the HRZ shale, including high porosity channeland deep water turbiditic sands. The Brookian conventional play is proven onthe North Slope; the USGS (2013) estimate the remaining oil potential to be 2.1billion barrels just within the Brookian sequence. Additional conventionalpotential exists in the deeper Kuparuk sands and the Ivashuk Formation. Drilling, (2012), in the adjacent acreage to the north confirmed that the HRZshales, along with the underlying Kingak & Shublik shales, were all within theoil window which is extremely encouraging for the unconventional potential atProject Icewine. In addition a conventional oil discovery was reported in theKuparuk sandstones. A Prospective Resources Report by DeGolyer and MacNaughton was commissioned by88 Energy to evaluate the unconventional resource potential of Project Icewinein early December 2014 and was released to the market on 19 January 2015. Yours faithfully Dave Wall Managing Director 88 Energy Ltd About 88 Energy: 88 Energy recently acquired an initial 87.5% working interestand operatorship in 99,360 acres onshore the prolific North Slope of Alaska("Project Icewine"). The North Slope is the host for the 15 billion barrelPrudhoe Bay oilfield complex, the largest in North America. The Company, withits Joint Venture partner Burgundy Xploration, has identified two highlyprospective play types that are likely to exist on the Project Icewine acreage- one conventional and one unconventional. The large resource potential of theIcewine Project was recently independently verified by leading internationalpetroleum resource consultant DeGolyer and MacNaughton. In addition to theinterpreted high prospectivity, the project is strategically located on ayear-round operational access road and only 35 miles south of Pump Station 1where Prudhoe Bay feeds into the TransAlaska Pipeline System. The Company plansto progress drilling and seismic in the near term to take advantage of theglobally unique fiscal system in Alaska, which allows for up to 85% of CY2015exploration expenditure to be rebated in cash. Media and Investor Relations: Australia 88 Energy [email protected]+61 8 9485 0990 Hartleys Ltd As Corporate AdvisorMr Dale Bryan+61 8 9268 2829 United Kingdom RFC Ambrian Limited As Nominated AdviserMr Oliver Morse+61 8 9480 2500

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