www.gulfkeystone.com
Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd. (AIM: GKP) is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company focused on exploration in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. It holds a majority working interest in the Shaikan, Sheikh Adi and Ber Bahr exploration blocks and a further interest in the Akri-Bijeel block. Gulf Keystone is the Operator of the Shaikan and Sheikh Adi Production Sharing Contracts. Following a major discovery at Shaikan in 2009 and a discovery at Akri-Bijeel in 2010, the Company is undertaking an ambitious 2011-2012 exploration and appraisal programme across the four adjacent blocks. Gulf Keystone is also focused on continuing domestic oil sales and increasing oil export operations in order to move towards the Company’s production target of over 5,000 barrels of oil per day (“bopd”), increasing to 10,000 bopd thereafter.
Gulf Keystone non-exec buys 2 million shares amid encouraging reports from Shaikan oil and gas project
Iraq and Algeria operating Gulf Keystone Petroleum (AIM: GKP) reported that its non-executive director Jeremy Asher has purchased 2 million shares in the company representing 0.41% of its issued share capital at an average price of 94 pence per share through Asher Family Trust owned company Agile Energy.
The transaction gives Agile Energy a 2.9% interest in the company. This beneficial interest was pledged as part of the security package for a revolving credit facility for the Asher Family Trust.
The average purchase price represents a roughly 7.5% discount to the stock’s Friday’s closing price.
Gulf Keystone has performed incredibly well lately, rising from 13 pence in August to the current 106.5 pence, mostly due to the reports from its oil and gas projects in the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq.
Broker Fox-Davies Capital (FD-Capital) has recently upped its target price for the stock to 200 pence after the company announced an additional Triassic discovery from its Shaikan-1 well in Kurdistan, reporting flow rates of 10,000 boepd (barrels of oil equivalent per day), resulting in an aggregate test rate of 20,000 boepd from the Jurassic tests done in the well thus far.
Gulf Keystone has previously reported test results from the Jurassic zone, where tests indicated production of 7,000 bopd. Therefore, the cumulative Jurassic and Triassic zones have demonstrated the potential to produce approximately 31,000 boepd. The company has discovered over 1000 meters of oil column and over 200 meters of net pay, but had only tested less than 30% of the net pay zones.
Shaikan-1 was sealed off at 2950 meters to due higher than anticipated bottom hole pressures, meaning the third exploration target in the underlying Permian Zone will be appraised in the middle of 2010 when the company drills the Skaikan-2 well.
Shares in Gulf Keystone rose 4.5% on the news today.
