Petroceltic International PLC Kurdistan Operations Update (3600I)
25 March 2015 - 6:00PM
UK Regulatory
TIDMPCI
RNS Number : 3600I
Petroceltic International PLC
25 March 2015
Dublin
25 March 2015
Petroceltic International Plc
Kurdistan Region of Iraq Operational Update
Petroceltic International plc (AIM: PCI) ("Petroceltic" or the
"Company"), the oil and gas exploration, development and production
company focused on the Middle East, North Africa and Mediterranean
regions, today provides an update with respect to its operations in
the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
As previously announced on 15 January, drilling operations on
the Shireen-1 exploration well in the Dinarta licence (Hess Middle
East New Ventures ("Hess") (Operator) 64%, Petroceltic 16%, and the
Kurdistan Regional Government 20%) encountered significant
operational challenges since the resumption of drilling on 2
October 2014. The well reached a maximum depth of 1430m in Jurassic
formations on 26 December 2014 before being suspended while forward
options were reviewed by the Operator. This review concluded that
an additional well would be required to further evaluate the
exploration potential of the Shireen prospect, and that further
operational difficulties could not be ruled out.
In light of the current low oil price environment, lack of
conclusive well results to date and the limited time remaining in
the current period of the Production Sharing Contract (PSC) for the
Dinarta licence, Hess and Petroceltic have jointly elected to
withdraw from the Dinarta licence without any further drilling. All
PSC work program obligations have been fulfilled other than the
required final remediation of the well sites.
Brian O'Cathain, Chief Executive of Petroceltic commented:
"Petroceltic's strategy remains clearly focussed on delivering
from its core producing and development assets, whilst maintaining
balanced exposure to longer term exploration led growth wherever
possible. In light of this, and the current oil price environment,
the decision to withdraw from Kurdistan is the right one for the
business."
Ends
For further information, please contact:
Brian O' Cathain /Tom Hickey, Petroceltic International Tel: +353 (1) 421 8300
Philip Dennis / Rollo Crichton-Stuart, Bell Pottinger Tel: +44 (20) 3772 2500
Douglas Keatinge / Joe Heron, Murray Consultants Tel: +353 (1) 498 0300
John Frain / Roland French, Davy Tel: +353 (1) 679 6363
Dr. Dermot Corcoran, Head of Exploration, Petroceltic
International plc, and the qualified person as defined in the AIM
Note for Mining and Oil and Gas Companies, June 2009, has reviewed
and approved the technical information contained in this
announcement. Dr. Corcoran has a B.Sc in Geology, a M.Sc. in
Geophysics, and a Masters degree in Business Administration, all
from the National University of Ireland, Galway. He also holds a
Ph.D in Geology from Trinity College, Dublin. Dr. Corcoran has over
20 years experience in oil & gas exploration and production,
and has previously worked at ExxonMobil, the Petrofina Group, and
Statoil.
Notes to Editors:
Petroceltic International plc is a leading Upstream Oil and Gas
Exploration and Production Company, focused on North Africa,
Mediterranean and Black Sea Regions, and listed on the London Stock
Exchange's AIM Market and the Irish Stock Exchange's ESM Market.
The Company has production, exploration and development assets in
Algeria, Egypt, Bulgaria, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and
Italy.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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