Meridian Petroleum (EPIC: MRP)

Assets and Key Events

The following assets and events are based on the "Activity Update" RNS released on 27th April 2006. Victory 1-21 (10% WI) Fluid is currently being removed from the well, however it is continuing to produce gas at a rate of 150 - 250 mcfgpd. The removal of fluid is expected to take between 30 - 45 days, following which production is anticipated to rise to approximately 1 mmcfpd. Calvin 36-1 (80% WI 67.5% NRI) The Calvin well had substantial gas shows (see "Calvin Well Commercial" RNS 24-01-06). The company has experienced some small hold ups in obtaining the appropriate personnel and equipment, and now anticipates completion and tie in within the next 30 days. Meridian is developing plans to re-enter the Calvin 5 # 31 well to test the Rodessa zone and potentially produce from either the Sligo Petit or Redessa zones. This should require minimal capital expenditure and is planned to commence after the completion of 36 # 1. Orion (100%) The company has recently signed a second 40 acre lease block with the land owner. Permitting is on going and drilling operations are set to begin at the end of the second quarter. Based on data from earlier wells, the asset is believed to contain around 2.7 billion cubic feet of recoverable gas (See "Orion Lease Signed" RNS 14-02-06). Milford 36 (25% WI) The company plans to utilize coiled tubing on the well bore and drill several lateral legs. Drilling activity is likely to commence towards the end of the second quarter. Hustler (80% WI) Meridian has acquired the Old South Royalty lease in the centre of a defined area for potential production from the Lower Tuscaloosa oil sands. In order to develop this position further, the company has commenced acquisition of seismic leases, with an option to drill in some 800 acres around the Old South Royalty lease. The company is finalising an agreement to shoot 3D seismic with a Houston based partner. Emery Hudson The company is currently reviewing the 3D seismic data with a view to a possible re-entry in the third quarter. Coal Bed Methane Meridian has identified a significant CBM project in the USA. The study is with the company's reserve engineers. Following the review, anticipated in the next few weeks, the company expects to lease an initial foot print in order to undertake a pilot project. Australia The company has conducted a detailed review. The analysis reported several distinct hydrocarbon indicators and two potentially significant reservoirs. The data and supporting study are being reviewed by Scott Pickford in the UK, and an opinion will be rendered shortly.

Research

You should always do your own research before investing in a company, and you should not rely on comments posted here or on other sites as a basis for your investment descisions. The following links may be useful: Meridian Petroleum Web Site     Recent company RNS announcements     Oil Barrel

strawbs -at least we have a normal site now-well done -no need to ramp this stock ph -so reducing the crap would be appreciated!.

hear hear... stick to your own thread PH!

Feel these shares have some more northwards movement, but it will be down to the boom that is occuring in most of the energy market... I am a good 39% up on these, will be holding for the time being... Strawbs, are you in on these and what do you think the short term prospects are?

Thanks for the positive comments everyone. Glad to hear you like the new thread. The information in the header is put together from various company announcements, with links to the relevant RNS messages. As I advise in the research section, anyone thinking of investing should do there own research first, and not rely on the comments of others (especially the sort of ones that plagued our previous threads). I hope the information provided proves usefull, and is presented in a suitably impartial way.

I do hold some MRP shares. I personally invested because the company appears to have good assets, short term production (hence income to expand and fund further drilling), and sound management (they seem to be delivering at present). In my opinion there appears to be plenty of short and near term prospects, with the Calvin hook up, and hopefully positive drilling at Orion later this year. Long term will depend on how well the management locates and exploits new prospects, and the continued strength of the oil and gas market.

Good luck with your investments.

Strawbs.

my fist ever post om this sight dident know they had bb's

hold on folks -!

mkt cap still low!-

Some real strong moverment on these ones today, any idears

yes good company with major assets and a mkt cap of 20 odd million. doesn't make sense.

VERY GOOD NEW HEADER,STRAwbs,up over 100p.c. now right on ,up to 50 p.

surely mkt cap must be in line with floatation high of around 52p -if not more, mrp are now in a much stronger position than then!.

over valued at float under valued now.

one to tuck away imo!

i like the site strawbs -useful to keep the activities section for all to view!.inc all relevant updates as and when they come!.

This is interesting reading for those who want to understand Meridian's interest in Michigan where many of its PROVEN and previously producing assets are based

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HYDROCARBONS: OIL AND GAS

Less than 90 years ago Michigan had no refineries and no oil wells. With the breakup of the Old Standard Oil company into separate companies in 1911, the petroleum industry entered into an era of stiff competition--an era which is producing the technological progress necessary to match automotive improvements. Small "shows" (a "show" is a successful well) of oil had been reported in Michigan before the turn of the century, but it was not until 1925 that the Saginaw Prospecting Company, headed by James C. Graves, brought in the states first commercial well in Saginaw County. In the 30 years which followed, Michigans relatively shallow fields have produced 385 million barrels of crude oil and 300 billion cubic feet of natural gas.
Michigans oil and gas industry began in 1925 when oil in commercial quantities was drilled near Saginaw. Since then, more than a billion barrels of oil and 3 trillion cubic feet of gas have been produced in the state--all in the lower peninsula (see below).

In 1970, hydrocarbon (oil and gas) production in Michigan took a giant leap forward with the discovery of the Niagara Trend. In the 1980's a similar discovery occurred when natural gas was hit in deeper strata known as the Prairie du Chien formation, and in the Antrim shale. These last two discoveries took Michigans gas production from 40 billion cu feet per year (1975) to 170 billion cu feet in 1990. In 1990, Michigan was the 16th largest oil producer and 13th largest gas producer in the US in 1994, and tops among midwestern states.
Petroleum and natural gas are trapped in various ways in sedimentary rock layers. The 14,000 ft of sedimentary rocks found on top of the Precambrian rocks in Michigan represent great potential for the accumulation of oil and gas. However, rocks that produce much of the petroleum and natural gas in other parts of the United States and the world---of the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras---are largely absent from the Michigan geologic column. Thus, liquid fossil fuels in Michigan must come dominantly from the sandstones, limestones, and shales of the Paleozoic era.
Oil and gas originate when organic materials, trapped in ocean-bottom sediments, decompose within the rocks and form oozes and liquids known as hydrocarbons. Hydrocarbons then migrate along and within permeable rock layers until they get to an area that is impermeable--areas called "traps".
One of the major oil and gas "traps" in southern Michigan is the Albion-Scippio Trend, in Jackson and Calhoun Counties (see map below). Other important structural traps include the Howell anticline and the Sanilac Fault.


At the edges of the Michigan Basin, many pinnacle reefs grew, formed and became buried. Today they are our major oil and gas production areas. In 1979, 55 of the 83 counties in Michigan were producers for petroleum---all of them were in the Lower Peninsula. In fact, only 13 counties in the Lower Peninsula produced no oil, and six counties produced over 1 million barrels. All of these six counties lie within the Niagaran-Silurian Reef system, which has been exploited since the late 1960s because improved technology and higher prices made greater profits possible, despite the considerable risk involved. Five of the six counties are in the northern Niagaran Reefs area---currently the most active oil and gas region in Michigan---where production began in 1969. Considerable amounts of oil and gas were sealed in the Niagaran Reefs, which formed along the edges of a salt sea that covered Michigan during the Silurian period. The pinnacle reefs were coral formations that long ago changed into porous, carbonate rock. They are isolated from one another and average from 100 to 200 acres in size
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meridian more good news to come dont sell keep buying

i will despite whatever it does monday- it could go either way!. but will hold firm!.
increase on any pullbacks IF/WHEN this happens?.

When sp goes to 150p I will top slice and get a free ride,the institutions can have what I sell then, not at this cheap price though.

Yes well done strawbs, i will now start having a look at look at this share, hope the hyping muppets learning something by the more conservative posts.

I normally ignore or squelch the "hyping" posters. In my opinion, factual or relavant information will do far more to promote the merits of a share to potential investors, than wild or misleading statements.

Strawbs

MM's short of stock-Hope to see significant rise again tomorrow,will see several tree shakes,but buying pressure will force price up again.

From Oil Barrel.com

"Meridian Petroleum Plans Kitty Litter Solution To Bring Sour Gas Project In Michigan Onstream
Meridian Petroleum has added another 3 billion cubic feet of proved and probable reserves to its portfolio with the addition of the Orion sour gas field in Michigan in the US. The field is home to two wells that were drilled and produced at rates of between 2 and 4 million cubic feet per day during the late 1980s and early 1990s but were then shut-in because of the hydrogen sulphide content of the gas.

AIM-quoted Meridian has submitted a plan to the Michigan Department of Environment to get this gas deposit back into production. The plan, which has been accepted by the DoE, involves a single well and two sulphur treat towers, a facility that is expected to cost between US$1.25 and US$1.5 million.

This is not a huge amount of money given the size of the reserve, the fact its onshore and these are 2P reserves, chief executive Tony Mason told oilbarrel.com.

The sulphur treat towers, about 15 to 20 ft high, are filled with kitty litter type material, which extracts the unwanted gas so that clean gas flows into the pipeline. The end product is biodegradable. This is a neat solution, helped along by the fact the planned well site lies in old industrial ground next door to a major gas line. The project economics are also enhanced by reasonably rich condensate content of the gas, said Mason.

The company doesnt plan to re-enter the existing wells because their position is unsuitable for the sulphur treatment facility and the holes are of uncertain quality. The new well, which the company plans to drill in the second quarter when Michigan begins to thaw, will be directionally drilled, putting the well cost at around $500,000-$600,000. This is by no means a company-making project - Meridian expects the sustained flow rate to come in between 2-4 million cf/d like the previous wells - but it does add further near-term production to the companys portfolio.

The company has a number of these near-term production projects in the pipeline (and, unusually amongst its AIM peers, already enjoys production from its Emery Hudson property in Michigan). These include the Milford 36 project in Michigan, where the company is awaiting the arrival of sophisticated perforation equipment that it has used so successfully on the Calvin field, in order to bring this project to fruition.

The Calvin field is the current star performer in the portfolio, following the recent success of the 36-1 well, which flowed more than 1 million cf/d of condensate-rich gas from the Sligo Petit zone. Meridian hopes to get the field onstream shortly and then plans to re-enter an old well, 35-1, to target the Rodessa zone. It is also eying previously undrilled deeper zones on the field as well as seeking to add to its position in the Calvin area.

This is proving to be an interesting project and one that is back on track after the frustrating delays of last year. Meridian was not alone in being at the wrong end of the inevitable equipment shortages that are now a common feature of the booming North American market, particularly in the Gulf area, but investors proved impatient and unforgiving. 2005 was, admits Mason, a horrible year from that point of view.

The company isnt a one-country play. It is also active in South Australia, where it is keen to get to grips with the Dolores prospect in the Arrowie Basin once native title has been confirmed. The company has a 100 per cent working interest in the prospect, which is reckoned to hold around 125 bcf of gas and lies just 25 km from the existing Moomba-Adelaide gas line.

Meridian has reprocessed all the original stack data and old seismic lines and hopes to complete its analysis of the original seismic field tapes by mid-March.

Weve had an additional slew of data from the government in Australia, which has been really helpful, said Mason. What we are seeing looks like a pretty significant reservoir although were not sure how we handle it commercially.

It all adds up to an interesting low-to-medium risk exploration portfolio, with plenty of near-term production in train to make sure growth is underpinned by cashflows: sensible and boring in Masons words but one for those who dont have the appetite for the white-knuckle ride offered by some of AIMs wildcatting E&P stocks "

Those wishing to purchases should do so before 10 am when the market begins to wake up. Would expect heavy overseas buying when US opens. Several US broking houses will soon begin to cover this stock as primary assets are US based.