Eland Oil & Gas PLC (LON:ELA) issued an update this week on what it described as “an exceptional operational year” in 2018 and set higher expectations for 2019. It was the most active development period in the company’s history with seven wells drilling, re-entered and completed across three fields within the OML 40 asset group.
The Nigeria-focused company, in a statement, said production net to its Elcrest subsidiary averaged 8,000 barrels of oil per day last year, more than doubling the rate of 3,934 in 2017.
It exited the period stronger still the ramp-up continued, as new wells were added, with the rate marked at 13,240 bopd at 31 December and the peak record production rate was set at 13,986 bopd.
Production for 2019 is anticipated between 14,000 and 17,000 bopd net to Elcrest.
SDX Energy Inc (LON:SDX) on Monday revealed a positive start to 2019 with the SRM-3 well, at the South Ramadan project in Egypt, unearthing oil pay in multiple reservoir zones.
SRM-3 was drilled down to a depth of 15,635 feet. It encountered 75 feet of net conventional oil pay in its primary target, the Matulla reservoir, also 20 feet in the Brown Limestone formation and 15 feet in the Sudr section.
The well will now be completed in the Matulla section before a test programme which will determine whether it flows at a commercial rate.
United Oil & Gas Plc (LON:UOG) told investors it has received preliminary regulatory approval for a production concession in Italy, opening up the Selva gas field development project.
The company, which owns 20% of the project, believes the asset will deliver significant cash flow in 2020. Selva is located in close proximity to gas infrastructure, less than one kilometres to the grid, and, gross production is targeted at up to 5.3mln cubic feet per day (150,000 cubic metres per day).
A significant gas discovery was declared at Selva around a year ago, when the Podere Maiar-1d appraisal/redevelopment well produced strong flow rates from testing operations.
88 Energy Ltd (LON:88E), the Alaska oil explorer secured a permit to drill the Winx-1 well. Drilling is slated to start by mid-February, the company confirmed.
Presently, operations are focused on the construction of an ice road to the intended well site and subsequently rig mobilization is anticipated in early February. The new well aims to extend the Nanushuk oil play fairway, as it is located around four miles from the Repsol drilled Horseshoe discovery well.
Winx-1 has a 400mln barrel target, 144mln net to 88 Energy, across multiple stacked objectives.
Touchstone Exploration Inc (LON:TXP), the Trinidad oiler provided details of the Ortoire exploration block where there’s potential for a multi-year exploration campaign.
The statement includes the findings of a prospect evaluation process undertaken by GLJ Petroleum Consultants Ltd, which reviewed each of the prospects previously identified by Touchstone within the Ortoire block.
GLJ estimates the block’s prospective resources in a range of 5.49mln to 66.50mln barrels oil equivalent, in the low to high case respectively. At present, the contingent resources (or ‘development pending’ resources) at Ortoire are estimated at 1.87mln to 5.29mln boe.
Touchstone owns an 80% stake in the block, so it’s share amounts to 4.39mln to 53.2mln barrels of prospective resources and 1.49mln to 5.29mln barrels of contingent resources. The consultant also provided an estimate of the block’s net present value which, including a 10% discount, amounted to US$10.5mln to US$86.86mln.
Jersey Oil & Gas PLC (LON:JOG) told investors that the rig contracted to drill the upcoming Verbier appraisal well will shortly begin a three-well programme for operator Equinor.
Verbier is the third of the three wells in Equinor's schedule. The discovery, successfully drilled in 2017, is estimated to have between 25mln and 130mln barrels oil equivalent, with a mean of 69mln barrels.
Cadogan Petroleum PLC (LON:CAD) said it exited 2018 with a production rate of 274 barrels of oil equivalent per day marking a better-than-anticipated performance for the year. Average production measured 250 boepd for the whole of 2018, which was 25% better than the company targeted and represents a 61% improvement from 2017.
The Ukraine focused firm highlighted that this was achieved despite the Cheremkhivske gas field being shut-down in May, as a production licence extension was delayed. Cadogan noted that its production was sold at an averages price of US$52 per barrel of oil equivalent, some US$10 per barrel more than in the preceding year.
On Monday, Block Energy Plc (LON:BLOE) released what it described as excellent initial production results from the Norio field’s well-44.
The well flowed at a rate of 45 barrels per day over a five hour period. In a stock market statement Block said it had made “highly encouraging” progress towards a targeted 25-fold increase in production, with 250 bopd aimed for by the end of the first quarter.
It highlighted that the targeted 250 bopd rate at Norio is in addition to the 650 bopd targeted over at Block’s West Rustavi field by the end of the first quarter of 2019 via a two well sidetrack drilling programme.
Highlands Natural Resources PLC (LON:HNR) revealed that all eight new wells at the East Denver project are now online as production wells. The company owns a 7.5% interest in East Denver and it expects it will now receive robust revenue streams from the wells throughout 2019.
Last year at East Denver, Highlands received a US$58.5mln commitment from a US oil-and-gas-focused private equity group to support an expansion of up to 24 wells at the site.