EnCore Oil PLC

It was a gamble...if it had been conclusive : the share sp would have rocketed...this is not the time to sell because EO. have plenty more strings to their bow !.

Not worried. Gas storage is a tricky thing and probably shouldn't be included in any valuation of a company. I'm not sure how profitable it is, but I'd expect finding the stuff and producing it to be very much more positive financially.

sort of my view - i.e. the storage was just an add-on bonus

Nice top up for Mr Booth.

EnCore Oil plc ('the Company') announces that it was notified on 5 March 2009 that Alan Booth, a director of the Company, on that day purchased 250,000 ordinary shares of 5p each in the capital of the Company at an average price of 7.93p per share. Following this transaction, Mr. Booth holds 9,825,000 ordinary shares, representing 3.20% of the issued share capital.

cyril

D/post

Nice top up Alan Booth.

EnCore Oil plc ('the Company') announces that it was notified on 5 March 2009 that Alan Booth, a director of the Company, on that day purchased 250,000 ordinary shares of 5p each in the capital of the Company at an average price of 7.93p per share. Following this transaction, Mr. Booth holds 9,825,000 ordinary shares, representing 3.20% of the issued share capital.

cyril

For immediate release: 9 March 2009

EnCore Oil plc

Director/PDMR Shareholding

EnCore Oil plc ("the Company") announces that it was notified on 6 March 2009 that Graham Dor a director of the Company, on that day purchased 130,000 ordinary shares of 5p each in the capital of the Company at an average price of 8.125p per share. Following this transaction, Mr. Dorholds 6,558,229 ordinary shares, representing 2.13% of the issued share capital.

cyril

Encore Oil (EO.), a Times report today suggests Centrica are interest in bidding 500m for the Breagh gas field. Encore has a 15% stake (which would be valued at over 24p per share at a 500m bid).
cyril

Seems to have excited the market. up 23%
cyril

;-)))

Added 3 days ago. She's trying to break up. 20p anyone?

Make that 2 days ago. Doh!

This was definitely the one to be on IMO. ;-)))

HOIL hasn't been too shabby either!

.............. but definitely not EME. ;-))

i think its NAV was estimatedend of last year at around 25p but its hard to estimate it as encore want to prove up assets.......but oil price is going up up up.

i agree with you al on both issues.....good medium hold this one

i am out of this one at the mo, but for a micro mini it has it's good points, not least that it operates in uk waters

they reckon breagh is about to be sold of for at least 500 million and likely to be more than this.....mmmm

One of my main fund picks on stockopedia

Press Release




For immediate release: 25 June 2009




EnCore Oil plc ('EnCore' or 'the Company')




Activity Update




EnCore Oil plc is pleased to announce an update on its activities.




OFFSHORE ACTIVITIES




Breagh: Following the successful testing of the Breagh horizontal well in January 2009, located in block 42/13a in the UK Southern North Sea, the company confirms that along with its partners, it is now in exclusive negotiations with a third party with regards to the sale of an aggregate 70 per cent equity interest in the Breagh gas discovery. EnCore intends to sell the whole of its 15 per cent equity in this and the adjacent licences. A sale and purchase agreement is expected to be signed in the coming weeks and a further announcement will be made at that time.




Cladhan: (formerly known as Bowstring East) Plans are underway for an appraisal well to be drilled on the Cladhan light oil discovery located in block 210/29a in the UK Northern North Sea. Timing of the well is still to be finalised, but it is likely that this will be Q4 2009 or Q2 2010. EnCore holds a 16.6 per cent. interest in the discovery and the licence operator is Sterling Resources Ltd. The initial well, drilled in November 2008, confirmed the presence of a stratigraphically trapped 110 ft light oil column with no apparent oil-water contact.




Ceres (formerly known as Barbarossa): Located in the UK Southern North Sea block 47/9c, Ceres is expected to begin first production in Q4 of this year. EnCore has a 10 per cent. interest in Ceres subject to a 5 per cent. buy back right by a previous owner. The well is being developed as a subsea tieback jointly with the nearby Eris discovery.




Catcher (EnCore 15 per cent.): In May, the Company assumed operatorship of blocks 28/9 and 28/10c following licence operator Oilexco being placed into administration. The Company is now working with partners, Premier Oil, Nautical Petroleum and Wintershall, to finalise a plan for a well on the Catcher prospect which is likely to be drilled in 2010.




Cobra (EnCore 25 per cent. Operator): Following the drilling of the Cobra appraisal well (48/2c-5) in 2008 the Group has undertaken a number of subsurface geotechnical studies and is currently carrying out a fracture stimulation study with a view to redrilling the 48/2c-5 well as a horizontal well and completing it with fracture stimulation.




Bennett (EnCore 70 per cent.): In 2008, 525 km of 2D seismic data was acquired and 150 square km of 3D data was reprocessed to better image the Bennett prospect, located in block 43/15a. The new data has now been interpreted and the Company is seeking an additional farm-in partner with a view to drilling a well on the Bennett prospect possibly in 2010.




Ireland: Following the acquisition and interpretation of new seismic data in 2008, Island Oil and Gas (operator) has commenced a scoping reservoir engineering study to evaluate injection and withdrawal rates for conversion of the Old Head gas field (EnCore 15 per cent.) to a gas storage facility early in the future production life of the field. Subject to the results of the engineering and facilities study, Island will also investigate the potential conversion of the Schull gas field (EnCore 12.5 per cent.) to a gas storage facility.




25th Offshore Licencing Round: EnCore, together with a number of co-venturers, was awarded four licences in the UK 25th Round. Consistent with our capital management strategy, we did not commit to significant work programmes on any of the licences awarded. Additionally the Company holds an option (but not an obligation) to participate at up to 30 per cent. equity on a ground floor basis in a firm well programme on a licence awarded to a another party.










ONSHORE ACTIVITIES




EnCore welcomes the recent decision by the Court of Appeal in the Bocardo vs Star case, relating to claims for sub surface trespass. Subject to any future appeal decision in favour of Bocardo, the result is regarded as a positive clarification for our onshore licence portfolio.




Markwells Wood and Havant: The Operator, Northern Petroleum has advised that the access track and site build for the well at Markwells Wood (PEDL126, EnCore 10 per cent) began in March 2009 and it is expected that the well will be drilled in Q4 2009 or Q1 2010 depending upon rig availability, and possibly in conjunction with a well on the Havant Prospect.




Kirkleatham (EnCore 20 per cent.): Progress has been made at the Kirkleatham gas discovery in licence PEDL068 operated by Egdon Resources, with the outline agreement in January 2009 of terms for gas sales for power generation on the Wilton site. A planning application has been submitted and Egdon is targeting first gas sales by the end of 2009.




Biscathorpe: 3D Seismic reprocessing work has now been completed on our recently awarded Biscathorpe licence (PEDL 253, EnCore 60 per cent. and Operator) and the partnership will be seeking farm-in partners with a view to drilling a well to appraise the Biscathorpe structure in 2010 or 2011. The structure, located updip of the Keddington and Saltfleetby fields, was originally drilled by BP in 1987 and is interpreted to have encountered thin hydrocarbon bearing sands. Biscathorpe represents one of the larger remaining unappraised onshore structures, with significant stratigraphic upside potential.




PEDL 089 and 1153: EnCore and Northern Petroleum (Operator) have both agreed to reassign all their respective interests in onshore licences PEDL 089 (EnCore 20 per cent.) and P1153 (EnCore 20 per cent.) to Wessex Exploration, in return for Wessex settling their outstanding cash calls. Following additional seismic studies which were performed on the licences, and under the relevant terms of the farm-in agreements with Wessex, both EnCore and Northern concluded that we did not wish to progress any further activity on this licence.







GAS STORAGE




Gas Storage (EnCore 100 per cent.): On 28 January 2009, EnCore announced that Star Energy (a wholly owned subsidiary of Petronas) no longer wished to proceed with the Front End Engineering and Design phase of the Esmond gas storage project, a requirement of Star Energy's farm in agreement with EnCore. As a result, Star's 50 per cent. ownership of the Esmond and Gordon licences has now reverted back to EnCore. Esmond and Gordon are located on UK Southern North Sea blocks 43/13a, 43/15a & 43/20a.




The Company is continuing with work on gas storage development options and will be seeking potential new partners or new owners to help move the project forward.



Commenting on recent activity and the current market, Alan Booth, EnCore's Chief Executive Officer, said:




'I thought it might be useful to reflect not only our current status and our future plans, but also to consider whether our original strategy as a company was the right one or whether we could, or should, have done things differently.




The last nine months of market and credit turbulence have demonstrated the market's strong desire to re-price risk. Oil and gas exploration and appraisal is by its very nature a risky and capital intensive business, and the market has now decided that these risks are higher than it either was led to, or wanted to, believe and share prices have moved accordingly. As a company we took a conscious decision not to over-leverage or over-commit ourselves by taking readily available debt and/or quasi debt in an overheated market. Whilst we received some criticism at the time, we believe that this was the right decision. Bidding on work programmes on new licences (which are, of course, financial commitments) has also been heavily tempered by both lack of further equity capital and a very tight market for attracting farm-in partners. As the oil price fell from $140 to $40 the demand, both from potential farminees and equity investors, for 'near term drilling opportunities' with a rig contract in place vanished almost overnight. Indeed the main question became 'do you have an ability to defer your activity and reduce capital spend?'. As can be seen from the lack of drilling activity in 2009, we feel we were reasonably well placed to do that. We are pleased that we were not tied into long term contracts for rigs, or trying to develop modest fields in $100+ cost environments whilst facing $40 per barrel revenue streams. Our relatively conservative strategy has, I believe, helped us weather the storm better than some. However if oil was still currently trading at $140, I'm sure we would have received some criticism for being 'risk averse'.




Our strategy is to find and appraise oil and gas fields to the natural point in their life cycle that give us the best return for the amount of capital invested. Many of our projects are now at that point in their life cycle, although some have arrived at that point sooner than we might have hoped because of the equity and credit crunch. We are now looking to sell some of these assets. The principal asset of course is Breagh, which is at an advanced stage in the sale process. We are also seeking to create tangible value from our Irish discoveries, now that the ownership of Kinsale has been settled. Our onshore portfolio has never attracted the market's attention, mainly due to perceived relative immateriality, and we are currently considering how we might best achieve recognition of this value for our shareholders. It contains a relatively balanced portfolio of pending production from Kirkleatham and near term low risk appraisal drilling as well as a high potential exploration target.




Of course gas storage has featured heavily in our minds over the past year. Now we own these assets 100%, we feel that we are better placed to seek to achieve value for them, although the market for such assets is still flat. This is mainly because of the level of capital investment required and a relatively depressed gas market. We are currently completing the revised development plan and associated economic model to account for the partially repressurised lower reservoir. Whilst recent events would strongly suggest that current UK storage appears to be as much dedicated to fulfilling European gas shortages as the UK's, it would seem there should be a political imperative to encourage the development of more gas storage with a more strategic element, although it appears that the market is being left to sort this out. Whilst there is a widespread recognition of these facts, the market interest for our asset is still uncertain. However we will keep our shareholders updated on any significant developments.




As significant shareholders, the Directors are aligned on creating value, and not just creating continued employment for ourselves. We will therefore continue to strive to create the maximum value for our shareholders'.

cyril