Lansdowne Oil & Gas plc, the Dublin-based exploration company, announce that its recently acquired wholly-owned subsidiary Milesian Oil & Gas Limited (“Milesian”) has been awarded a new exploration licence in the North Celtic Sea basin, off the south coast of Ireland.
Standard Exploration Licence 5/08 is a successor authorisation to Milesian’s previously held Licensing Option (05/2) and covers an area of 449 sq kms over parts of blocks 47/25, 48/21, and 48/22. The blocks are located 30 kms from the coastline, in water depths of approximately 100 metres.
The Norwegian based company, Wavefield Inseis ASA, has been contracted to carry out a 2D seismic survey of approximately 485 kms over the Amergin and Eremon structures that have been mapped from existing seismic data. Amergin has been independently verified as having best case potentially recoverable prospective resources of 63 million barrels of oil equivalent (“MMBOE”).
The M/V Malene Østervold seismic vessel is expected to arrive in Irish waters and to commence operations on behalf of Milesian at the end of this month.
Standard Exploration Licence 5/08 is valid for a period of six years (in two three year phases) during which Milesian is required to drill an exploration well and to complete the acquisition of 300 kms of new seismic data within the first three year phase. The proposed acquisition of new seismic data will fulfil the latter obligation. Under the terms of the licence, on 31 March 2011 Milesian is required to surrender 50 per cent. of the licence area.
Lansdowne has also been awarded an extension to the area of Exploration Licence 4/07 (Midleton / East Kinsale) to take in part of Block 49/13, held previously by Milesian under Licensing Option 05/1. The area has been extended to encompass a fault block lead identified at Jurassic level and this will be evaluated further in conjunction with the prospects already identified on Midleton / East Kinsale at the Cretaceous level. The new area of Licence 4/07 is 542 sq kms compared with the previous area of 494 sq kms.
Emmet Brown, Business Development Director of Lansdowne, commented:
“Lansdowne now has a balanced portfolio of near-term exploration and appraisal gas satellite prospects along with these large, oil prospective targets. We are delighted with this award and the extension and look forward to quickly completing the seismic programme, the results of which should underpin the potential of this new licence and lead to exploratory drilling on one or both of the prospects. We are currently talking with potential farm-in partners in this regard.”