Rockhopper Exploration (LON:RKH) and Desire Petroleum (LON:DES) have agreed new 3D seismic contracts to expand the upcoming programme in the North Falklands Basin.
The companies announced today they have hired Polarcus Ltd to use the MV Polarcus Nadia (Nadia) seismic vessel, to survey three license areas. Last week Rockhopper and Argos Resources (LON:ARG) signed up the Polarcus Asima vessel for three other licenses.
With new seismic now planned for six license areas, the AIM market's three explorers in that oil basin are set to uncover new prospects across a substantial part of the high profile oil frontier.
The Falklands oil play has been in the headlines for several months, after the long awaited drilling programme got underway earlier this year. To date drilling results have been something of a mixed bag, with a number of unsucessful wells.
However Rockhopper’s Sea Lion discovery in June provided a significant boost to exploration play, and for the explorer's share prices.
Earlier this month Rockhopper raised £206.3 million to fund its next phase of exploration.
Nadia will begin the Rockhopper-Desire joint survey in December 2010, and it is expected to be completed by the end of April 2011. The Asima will be available for the Rockhopper-Argos joint survey by early January and it is expected to take around 50 days.
The Rockhopper-Desire joint survey will cover the PL003 and PL004 JV licences – in which Rockhopper has a 7.5% interest – as well as Rockhopper’s wholly-owned PL024 license.
Asima will survey Rockhopper’s wholly-owned PL032 and PL033 licenses, as well as Argos’ PL001 license.
Argos joined the AIM market in July, bringing its earlier stage assets to investors' attention, as the north basin play took off with the Sea Lion discovery.
With the growing profile of the Falklands play the Argos share price has risen particularly strongly.
After floating at 31p in July it more than doubled to hit 71p in September. The share has pulled back in recent weeks in sympathy with Desire’s unsucessful drilling results, and its shares were last changing hands at around 45p.
Argos’ assets are adjacent to Sea Lion. Recently Argos managing director John Hogan said its Boreas prospect could be a “mirror image of Sea Lion”.
Last week Argos chairman Ian Thomson said: “At the time of our listing in July we stated that it was our aim to secure a seismic vessel to commence shooting in the austral summer of late 2010/early 2011 ... this contract secures the front end of this timetable.”
Thompson highlighted that the survey may enable exploration drilling to start as early as the fourth quarter of 2011.
The Asima contract also allows Argos to obtain 3D coverage over a larger area than it initially planned when it listed.