Petroceltic Prepares Bid to Develop Gas Field in Algeria

PUBLISHED: 10 Aug 2012 @ 00:00 | Comments (0) | More info about Kenneth G. Mondero

Petroceltic International plc (LSE:PCI) said today, it is now ready to provide the Algerian Government all the necessary documents to support its bid for a 30-year exploitation permit for the Ain Tsila field in Algeria.

In a statement, Petroceltic said the parties to the Isarene Production Sharing Contract, has agreed to a Formal Declaration of Commerciality following a deal that gave Algeria’s national oil and gas company, Sonatrach, the right to market all of the produced gas in the said field.

The said document, along with the final discovery report submitted back in January 2012 and all other supporting documentation will be submitted to the regulators for their approval.

Major Milestone

“The declaration of commerciality on the AinTsila field is a major milestone for Petroceltic and our partners Sonatrach and Enel,” Petroceltic’s Chief Executive, Brian O’Cathain, said in a statement.

“This is a critical step towards formally recognising the reserves on this substantial field and our asset team is now focusing on planning for the development phase of the project,” he continued.

The latest estimates made by the JV partners of the hydrocarbon reserves in the Ain Tsila field are about 2.1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, 67 million barrels of condensate, and 108 million barrels of liquefied petroleum gas.

Algeria supplies about 10% of Europe’s natural gas needs through networks of pipelines going to Spain and Italy. The country is a recognised world-class producer with proven reserves of about 35 billion barrels of oil equivalent.

Falling Into Places

“Development work is expected to commence in 2014 and first gas is planned for the third quarter 2017,” the confident expectation of the company read – one not without basis.

After all, government-owned Sonatrach holds 25% interest in the joint venture, while another partner, Enel Trade spa – second largest buyer of Algerian gas and a long time player in the Algerian oil and gas industry, carries 18.375% stake, with the 56.625% controlled by Petroceltic.

This development came three days after the Italian parliament amended their laws on offshore oil and gas exploration, which, according to O’Cathain, “removes uncertainty in exploration, development, and production activities in Italian waters”.

Petroceltic share price reached 8.50 pence at 2:39 PM GMT on the London Stock Exchange, the highest in four months, following positive updates from the firm’s assets in the Mediterranean basin.

Company Spotlight

Petroceltic International plc is an upstream oil and gas exploration and production company focussing on the Middle East – North African region (MENA). Aside from assets in Italy and Algeria, Petroceltic has interests in the Kurdistan Autonomous Region in Iraq.

The company’s shares are dually listed on the Alternative Investment Market in London and in Dublin’s Enterprise Securities Market.

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