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Meridian Petroleum PLC
04 April 2006

MERIDIAN PETROLEUM PLC
('Meridian' or 'the Company')

VICTORY 1-21 SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED


Meridian, the oil & gas exploration and production company with key assets in
the USA and Australia today announced that the Victory 1-21 production well (10%
WI) has been successfully deepened in order to further penetrate a Niagaran
reef.

Using a coiled tubing unit and conventional work over rig, Total Depth was
reached at 4,394 feet and gas communication was made between 4,161 feet and
4,192 feet, an increase of approximately 31 feet in net pay. The well was
treated with acid to stimulate flow and is currently being swabbed to remove
remaining acid from the well bore following which the well will be put back on
line this week. It is anticipated that enhanced production rates will be gained
from the additional pay sections in the reservoir.

Anthony Mason, Chief Executive of Meridian said:

'The successful deepening of Victory 1-21 is good news for Meridian. The well
will be back on line this week, following which Meridian will resume receiving
income from Victory 1-21. We are now looking forward to the imminent completion
on Calvin 36.'

Don Caldwell, a certified petroleum geologist, is the Company's Qualified Person
and has reviewed the information in this announcement.


Enquiries:


Meridian Petroleum (020 7409 5041)
Tony Mason, Chief Executive

Westhouse Securities (020 7601 6100)
Richard Morrison

Citigate Dewe Rogerson (020 7638 9571)
Media enquiries: Martin Jackson / George Cazenove
Analyst enquiries: Nina Soon


This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange ND

I think MRP looks cheap

From ANF :

BOPD - 22 Feb'07 - 10:32 - 13493 of 13498 (premium)


(AIM:MRP) Mkt Cap: 18.1m Price: 22.75p BUY

Good US Progress - Scope for reserves and production upside

Following the 7 February update, promising a flow test of the Orion 36 well in Michigan, Meridian Petroleum has this morning delivered further encouraging news that points to significant volumes of gas in the second quarter. It has this morning published another update, focused on Orion, Calvin 36 (Louisiana) and Milford 36 (Michigan), where the company expects to increase its exposure.
Having earlier suggested potential for Orion reserves estimates to be revised higher, the company this morning states that production potential of the Orion 36 gas well is likely to exceed directors expectations. Output of an initial minimum 3-4 million cubic feet per day (mmcfpd) is thought possible, with some upside later in the development programme.
MRP owns 75% of the project and is preparing to install the hydrogen sulphide (H2S) removal equipment ready for commercial production in 2Q07. The well is adjacent to the CMS Energy-operated pipeline, with the local utility buying the gas from the field. Orion was originally thought to contain 3bn cubic feet (bcf) of recoverable reserves, but there are hopes of an upwards revision in the forthcoming independent assessment.
In Louisiana, the Calvin 36 #1 well is ready to enter production. The well has so far performed in line with expectations and is thought capable of delivering 1-2mmcfpd once on line and hooked up to the existing field gas production facilities. MRP owns 68.75% of this well, which is not covered by the Ensight farm-in agreement that will focus on development of shallow and deep formations in the Calvin area.
Next in line is the Milford 36 well in Michigan, where work is due to commence within the next 30 days. The current net revenue interest (NRI) is 25%, but MRP expects to have enlarged its holding during the 30-day period. The well has in excess of 100 feet of potential pay zone with reasonable permeability and porosity. It too is adjacent to an existing pipeline and the hook-up is unlikely to pose any major issues.
Comment
These are bread and butter projects for Meridian that, if developed successfully, will demonstrate a technical capability and provide useful volumes and cash generation before the company gets stuck into the higher-profile projects namely Calvin Deep, West Sipsey coal bed methane (CBM) and the Australian Dolores gas prospect. Trends in reserves and near-term production are encouraging. The shares have struggled of late, but the steady flow of largely positive news should help push the stock closer to our DCF-based price target in excess of 40p a share. We reiterate our BUY recommendation.
- Alan Marshall

Ambrian is engaged as corporate broker to this company.

Recommendation - Buy

Sold mine. Good luck to everyone else.

Strawbs.

chart below is fairly self explanatory with 25, 50 and 200 dma all in close proximity ..... resistance/support possible/probable at 22.50 (unfortunately did not paste in as it should have!)

would be difficult to recommend a "buy" at the moment, but if there is an upward break, then it could be quite potent.

I suspect you're right. The charts been a roller coaster for the last few months, and the wild movements show just how much it gets traded. I just can't be bothered to hold it any longer. I might be back if the price drops far enough, but for the moment it's been relegated to the watch list.

Strawbs.

Just bought some today in view of the good news.

next resistance looks to be at only 24 ... all too congested for me

Cynic, Am a beginning to try to read charts, so could you explain why you think resistance will be at 24 I thought 26 but would appreciate a lesson (short)

think you may be right, though if you follow the 24p line across you'll see why, but i am very amateurish at these things .... even so, 26 is no great profit to target

Thanks, 26 is no great profit especially when it still leaves me in the red but at least it's in the right direction and I'm hopeful it will break through - the eternal optimist!!!!

Cynic, See what you mean. Looks like it could be 24 then 26. Won't hold my breath then

I think MRP is on the way up now with regards to recent news and progress. I think 30p in the short term.

It was nearly 40p last May.

Good news...


Meridian Petroleum PLC
27 February 2007


Meridian Petroleum plc

('Meridian' or the 'Company')


Orion Well Update


Meridian Petroleum, the oil and gas exploration and production company with key
assets in the USA and Australia, announces further details of well testing at
the Orion site in Michigan.


Further to the Company's announcement dated 22 February 2007, comprehensive
Bottom Hole Pressure (BHP) data has now been obtained for the Orion 36 well
(Meridian 75 per cent. net revenue interest) located in Oakland County,
Michigan. The BHP readings were as follows: BHP 1,548 pounds per square inch
(PSI); on flow with a 3/64 inch choke at 1,533 PSI. The pressure readings are in
line with the BHPs achieved by the original Fons and Jacobs wells.


Analysis completed by Southern Petroleum Laboratories Inc. demonstrates that the
Hydrogen Sulphide (H2S) content at Orion is 0.21%. The gas BTU content is 1,098
on a dry basis and 1,079 on a wet basis. These results reveal that once the H2S
is removed, Meridian will have pipeline quality gas at the Orion 36 Well.


Tony Mason, Chief Executive Officer stated, 'The Company is currently moving
ahead rapidly with the tie into the CMS pipeline and the construction of the H2S
removal facilities on site. Based on the BHP data, we anticipate that the flow
rate will be in excess of the Board of Directors' expectations for Orion.'


John Randell who works for Wellmaster LLC, and Southern Petroleum Laboratories
are independent contractors who meets the criteria of a qualified person under
the AIM guidance note for mining, oil and gas companies, have reviewed and
approved the technical information contained in this announcement with respect
to Orion.

from oil barrel today.
Dexter


28.02.2007
One Year On And Orion Gets Ready To Shine For Meridian Petroleum
Twelve months on from inking the lease on the Orion sour gas project in Michigan and Meridian Petroleum is inching towards first production. Meridian has a 75 per cent net revenue interest in the project, which is reckoned to hold 3 billion cubic feet of proved and probable reserves. This is a tasty resource and will make a healthy contribution to the AIM-quoted companys bottomline.

The Orion field is home to two wells that produced at rates of between 2 and 4 million cubic feet per day (cf/d) during the late 1980s and early 1990s but were then shut-in because of the hydrogen sulphide (H2S) content of the gas. New H2S removal technologies and high gas prices have, however, made this abandoned project newly attractive to the likes of Meridian, which is keen to grow a gas business in the Lower 48.

Meridians first job has been to test the quality of the reservoir. It has just completed the Orion-36 well, which was drilled to a total depth of 4,100 ft, encountering 111 ft of net pay on the way down. This included 33 ft with porosity of 4.5 per cent and 78 ft with porosity of between 6 and 7.5 per cent. These porosity readings are encouraging as they are comparatively high for a Niagaran Reef in this area, which traditionally has low porosity.

Bottom hole pressure readings indicate that flow rates will be higher than anticipated and earlier this month a flow test produced 3-4 million cf/d. Laboratory analysis indicates the hydrogen sulphide content is 0.21 per cent: this will be removed by an onsite removal facility, leaving the company with pipeline quality gas. The gas will be piped to a nearby pipeline operated by local utility CMS Energy, which has agreed to buy the gas: work has now started on this pipeline connection.

This is by no means a company-making project but it does add further near-term production to Meridians portfolio. This includes the Calvin field in Louisiana, where Meridian has a 68.75 per cent NRI in the southern portion of the field with rights to the shallow Sligo-Petit and Rodessa formations as well as the deep gas Cotton Valley formations.

This is a very promising project the first well on the field, the 36-1 well, flowed more than 1 million cf/d of condensate-rich gas from the shallow Sligo-Petit zone in February 2006 but it has moved forward at an agonisingly slow pace, given equipment and personnel shortages and the need to complete financing and permitting.

Things now appear to be moving again, with the project given a shot in the arm by the introduction in November 2006 of local outfit Ensight Partners III as a 50/50 joint venture partner and a new share placing that raised 1.25 million in December 2006. Earlier this month the company perforated and swabbed the 36-1 well, which is now being readied for production testing. This will be followed by a field development study, including plans to exploit the Sligo Petit and Rodessa zones as well as the deeper Calvin Deep and Troy Lime reservoirs.

These deeper reservoirs are fairly prodigious, high pressure sands that are productive for other players in the area. Last year, for example, Anadarko Petroleum described its Vernon field, some 40 miles to the north and on trend, as a sleeping giant, with proven reserves of 1.4 trillion cubic feet of gas.

Meridians project isnt in this league but it still looks promising. A previous operator, Fina, put the reserve number on the Calvin deep gas at 300 billion cubic feet of gas and petroleum engineers Scott Pickford point to a total in-place gas resource of 252.65 bcf with an estimated recoverable resource of 157.88 bcf.

It wont be easy accessing this potential, however. Some of the deep reservoirs are relatively tight and will be difficult to produce. Achieving a commercial flow rate from these sandstones will depend on the successful application of modern completion techniques. And the Calvin sandstones are over-pressured, requiring specially rated equipment to drill and develop safely.

But on the plus side, the resource is substantial, its onshore, some of the reserves are already behind pipe and extensive production infrastructure, from processing facilities to pipes, is already in place. Investors will be keen to see this infrastructure put to good use as Meridian finally brings its Calvin 36-1 gas stream online.

I am looking for a good week on AST and MRP next week, potential for news on both of them imo.

I think MRP looks cheap now...once Calvin 36-1 goes online, it will shoot.

Operations Update out

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=200703160700490773T

This co is so fustrating, they have being going on about hook up of Calvin 36-1 for over 13 months & each update is full of promises but fails to deliver !!! I understand the complexities of the work but the people running the business are supposed to be experts in these areas !!
I suppose the SP will drop again !!!!!
Just letting ot some fustration, any thoughts that may help me to calm down.

delays of any kind, let alone unreasonable ones, are 95% certain to presage ultimate bad news