TIDMEME
RNS Number : 5075O
Empyrean Energy PLC
21 August 2017
This announcement contains inside information
Empyrean Energy PLC / Index: AIM / Epic: EME / Sector: Oil &
Gas
21 August 2017
Empyrean Energy PLC ("Empyrean" or the "Company")
Dempsey 1-15 (Empyrean 30% Working Interest) Natural Gas Well
Drilling Update
-- Four gas zones confirmed by wireline and mud logs in
sandstones between 1,000 and 1,560 metres
-- Net pay estimates range from 30-50 feet in undrained fault block
-- Casing currently being cemented in preparation for drilling
ahead into the remaining 5-plus potential interpreted highly
prospective sandstone reservoirs
Empyrean Energy (EME : AIM), the oil and gas development company
with interests in China, Indonesia and the United States, is
pleased to announce that it has been informed by Sacgasco Limited
(ASX: SGC) ("Sacgasco"), the operator of the Dempsey 1-15 well in
the Sacramento Basin, onshore California, that the field appraisal
drilling component of the Dempsey 1-15 well has been successfully
concluded. Dempsey 1-15 has reached the planned intermediate casing
point and has been wireline logged.
The wireline and mud logs have confirmed four zones of
interpreted gas saturated sandstones at field production levels at
depths from approximately 1,000 metres (3,300 feet) to 1,560 metres
(5,100 feet). Based on log correlations and 3D seismic, these gas
filled sands have not been previously produced in this fault block
of the field.
The net gas pay estimate from the logs ranges from 30 to 50 feet
depending on petrophysical-parameter cut-off values used. These
zones will now be protected behind casing for future testing and
production.
As planned, 9 5/8" casing has been run to a depth of
approximately 1,760 metres (5,800 feet), and is currently in the
process of being cemented in preparation for drilling ahead into
more than five prospective underlying sandstone reservoir
targets.
To view a press release with pictures please visit
www.sacgasco.com.
Empyrean CEO Tom Kelly commented, "We are pleased that
operations to date have been executed efficiently and safely by
Sacgasco and its local operational team. The early results are
encouraging. It is pleasing to hear from the operator that it's
local team are confident that the gas zones discovered in the
shallower zones of this well to date have the potential to provide
enough cashflow to at least cover the costs of the well, which is
exactly what we had hoped for from these shallower zones. This is
excellent news in any well where you have shallow pay zones logged
before you embark on the exciting drilling of significantly larger
deeper primary prospects."
Dempsey Prospect and Dempsey 1-15 Well
Dempsey is a large structure mapped with 3D seismic and
interpreted by Sacgasco to have the potential to hold a prospective
resource of over 1 Tcf of gas in up to seven stacked target
reservoirs. Individual, unrisked Deterministic Prospective
Resources for the primary targets range from 116 Bcf to 352 Bcf of
recoverable gas. Should all the stacked reservoirs be full of gas,
the cumulative unrisked recoverable Prospective Resources within
the Dempsey prospect could exceed 1 Tcf.
The primary targets are interpreted in a series of Cretaceous
sandstone reservoirs that exhibit structurally consistent amplitude
anomalies similar to those that are observed on seismic data
elsewhere in the basin where conventional sandstone reservoirs have
trapped natural gas in mapped structural closures, for example the
Tulainyo / James and Alvares wells.
Sacgasco expects to intersect gas shows in a number of zones in
the Dempsey 1-15 well and these will be assessed based on the
information available, but quantitative results will need to await
conventional logging after drilling each section of the well and
may need flow testing to be definitive.
The Dempsey 1-15 well is planned to be drilled in three discrete
sections to depths of approximately 600m, 2,000m and 3,200m
associated with decreasing planned casing sizes. The well has been
designed conservatively to provide flexibility to respond to well
bore conditions and progressive results.
Empyrean has also been informed that since the Dempsey 1-15 well
will be exploring for a new gas pool, Sacgasco has requested that
the regulator keep the records confidential for two years as
allowed by Section 3234 of the Public Resources Code of California.
The regulator has approved the "Confidential Status" for Dempsey
1-15 in order to protect longer-term shareholder value.
Aside from compelling technical merit, the Dempsey 1-15 well
location sits next to existing gas metering and surface
infrastructure that is owned by the joint venture. This will allow
for any gas discovery to be tested and connected into the local
pipeline at relatively low cost and in an accelerated
timeframe.
This announcement has been reviewed by Empyrean's Technical
Director, Mr Frank Brophy BSc (Hons), who has over 40 years
experience as a petroleum geologist.
**ENDS**
For further information:
Empyrean Energy plc
Tom Kelly Tel: +61 8 9481 0389
Cenkos Securities plc
Neil McDonald Tel: +44 (0) 131 220 9771
Beth McKiernan Tel: +44 (0) 131 220 9778
Nick Tulloch Tel: +44 (0) 131 220 9772
St Brides Partners Ltd
Lottie Brocklehurst Tel: +44 (0) 20 7236 1177
Olivia Vita Tel: +44 (0) 20 7236 1177
The information contained in this announcement was completed and
reviewed by the Company's Technical Director, Mr Frank Brophy, who
has over 40 years' experience as a petroleum geologist.
Notes to Editors
About Empyrean Energy Plc (LON: EME)
Empyrean is a London AIM listed oil and gas explorer with three
potentially high impact new projects. Empyrean has a 1800km2
offshore oil permit located in the Pearl River Mouth Basin, China
where it has commenced 3D seismic Q2, 2017 to further mature two
large oil prospects, Jade and Topaz. The permit is directly South
East of the billion barrel+ Liuhua Oil Field operated by CNOOC and
two recent discoveries to the permits West and South further
enhance the merit of Jade and Topaz. Empyrean is operator and holds
100% of the exploration rights through to commercial discovery
where CNOOC have a back-in right to 51%.
Empyrean also has a 10% interest in West Natuna Exploration
Limited that holds 100% of the Duyung PSC in offshore Indonesia and
is targeting the Mako Shallow Gas Discovery that has an
independently verified 2C and 3C gas resource of between 430-650
Bcf recoverable gas. Successful testing operations were recently
completed at the Mako South-1 Well with 10.9 million cubic feet of
gas flow and better than expected reservoir quality and multi Darcy
permeability. The operator is currently analysing data with a view
to providing a development plan.
Empyrean also has a joint venture with ASX listed Sacgasco
Limited on a suite of projects in the Sacramento Basin, onshore
California, USA. The package includes two mature, multi-Tcf gas
prospects, 'Dempsey' and 'Alvares', and an Area of Mutual Interest
(the "Dempsey Trend AMI") that includes at least three already
identified, large Dempsey-style follow up prospects. Dempsey is a
large structure mapped with 3D seismic and interpreted by Sacgasco
to have the potential to hold a prospective resource of over 1 Tcf
of gas in up to seven stacked target reservoirs. The Company plans
to commence a 3,200 metre (10,500 feet) combined appraisal and
exploration well, Dempsey-1, in Q3 2017 to evaluate this
prospect.
Aside from compelling technical merit, the Dempsey-1 well
location sits next to existing gas metering and surface
infrastructure that is owned by the joint venture. This will allow
for any gas discovery to be tested and connected into the local
pipeline at relatively low cost and in an accelerated timeframe.
This early potential for short-term cash flow in the event of a
commercial discovery would be significant for the joint venture and
for the state of California where gas demand is high and
approximately 90% of consumption is imported from other states. Gas
produced in the Sacramento Basin currently prices at a 10-15%
premium to Henry Hub Gas Prices. The joint venture will be drilling
and testing the Dempsey Prospect, a 1 Tcf gas target in Q3,
2017.
Alvares is a large structure mapped with 2D seismic and
interpreted by Sacgasco to hold prospective resources of over 2 Tcf
estimated potential recoverable gas. A well drilled by American
Hunter Exploration Limited in 1982 for deeper oil intersected
5,000ft of gas shows. No valid flow test was conducted due to
equipment limitations and the deeper oil target failing. However
minor gas flows to surface were recorded even with these
limitations. The possibility of using the existing well bore to
sidetrack and get a valid flow test, thus reducing costs will be
examined.
The Dempsey Trend AMI is an Area of Mutual Interest extending to
approximately 250,000 acres and containing the Dempsey prospect
(described above) as well as at least three other, Dempsey-style
prospects which have been identified on existing seismic.
www.empyreanenergy.com
About Sacgasco Limited (ASX. SGC)
Sacgasco Limited (ASX: SGC) is an Australian-based energy
company focused on conventional gas exploration in the Sacramento
Basin, onshore California. SGC has an extensive portfolio of gas
prospects at both exploration and appraisal stages, including
multi-Tcf opportunities. The Company is targeting gas supply to the
local Californian gas market and burgeoning LNG market in North
America. SGC is of the view that the size of the prospects in
California have the potential to supply both the domestic
Californian gas market and export LNG markets.
www.sacgasco.com
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
DRLLIFSRTAILFID
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 21, 2017 02:51 ET (06:51 GMT)
Empyrean Energy (LSE:EME)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Empyrean Energy (LSE:EME)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024