Any experts out there with a view to todays RNS on Algerian gas find ?
Looks good to me but sp is down
Thanks in advance nr

because banking a decent profit can never be foolish and certainly pci's track record is not the best, added to which, there is the general unrest in north africa

Oil Barrel presentation 10/2/11
Brian O'Cathain, CEO of Petroceltic International
AIM-quoted Petroceltic International is focused on the giant Ain Tsila gas-condensate field in Algeria. An appraisal programme is now underway to derisk this multi-TCF find. Petroceltic also has interests in Tunisia and Italy.

Bubbling s wee bit today. Will Big Brian unleash some news early doors and then expand on it at Oilbarrel?

Should go a lot higher.....

Will but when?

Wait for appraisal results.....and it will surge...

Algeria now started to see civil unrest. Looks like another Tunisia/Egypt scenario. Tempted to sell if the sp goes above 16p.

Peaceful demonstration in Algiers on Saturday.

.

Petroceltic International plc in association with its partner Sonatrach, the Algerian National Oil & Gas Company, is pleased to announce well AT-4 on its Isarene Permit (Blocks 228 & 229a) in Algeria has successfully tested gas from two zones in the Ordovician at a maximum combined flow rate of 1.35 mmscf/d and 450 bwpd on a 48" choke.

Well AT-4, the first of the current appraisal campaign of the Ain Tsila gas discovery, was drilled to appraise the previously undrilled eastern margin of the Ain Tsila field and was located with the primary objective of maximising information about the gas-in-place rather than optimising flow rate on testing. The well encountered a gross gas column of 155 metres with no gas-water contact interpreted within two zones of the Ordovician reservoir. This gas-down-to is deeper than the gas-water contact currently interpreted in the field. Pressure data from logs and the test indicate the continuity of the Ain Tsila gas accumulation at this location and that AT-4 therefore represents a successful delineation well of the Ain Tsila field.

The AT-4 testing programme initially involved the perforation, fracture stimulation and then isolation of the lower zone with a sand plug. Following this, the upper zone was also perforated and fracture stimulated, the well cleaned out and the two zones flowed together.

The well flowed with a combined rate of 1.35 mmscf/d of gas (1593 cubic metres/hour) and 450 bwpd of water with a flowing wellhead pressure of 160 PSIG on a 48" choke. After isolation of the lower zone to reduce water production, the upper zone was flowed separately at 1 mmscf/d of gas (1180 cubic metres/hour) with an associated 250 bwpd. It is likely that the induced fractures in the well have extended below the current field gas-water contact into an underlying aquifer resulting in the volumes of produced water seen. This volume of water reduced the gas flow to rates significantly lower than anticipated from this well. Testing and sampling operations at AT-4 have been completed and the well has been suspended.

The next well in the appraisal drilling campaign, AT-5, is targeting one of several structural pop-up features in the field with the intention of carrying out multiple fracture stimulations in a horizontal well to improve productivity and ultimate recovery factor for the field. Following the successful drilling of the pilot hole, we are currently preparing to conduct logging operations prior to commencement of the horizontal section.

Brian O'Cathain, Chief Executive of Petroceltic commented:
"The first well in the current Ain Tsila appraisal campaign has successfully confirmed the extension of the field to the East and increased the proven area and calculated gas-initially-in-place. While the volumes of produced water reduced the gas flow rate, the data gathered from AT-4 will enable us to refine our remaining drilling and testing programme in the Ain Tsila discovery in 2011 and ensure we optimise our future plans for the field."

Still in...but gas just does not seem to be the flame of the day at all....another success and the sp drops....

wrong company, wrong location, wrong investment - sorry

Wished I sold out at 15p.....stuck in it ......convinced that it will come back as a very large gas accumulation seems to be there.

sorry to be a wet blanket again, but when was the last truly positrive rns? .... that algeria is too close for comfort to libya is another charmn

The location is not helping, that's for sure....but they do have one hell of a good appraisal campaign underway.....I'm not selling at a loss and will continue to have faith in this company...it's the troubles in north africa that is making the sp slip plus oil is preferred to gas.

sorry again, but it is truly bad logic to hold just because it would mean taking a loss .... for myself i should have been far more disciplined with AVN and taken a nasty knock instead of a bad whack, which i have belatedly now done

I have learnt to be patient.....and I will be because there is big, good progress here.....the sp will bounce back....

i hope you're right .... it's a stock that i keep on my watchlist and dabble in from time to time

They are drilling one well after another...at some time soon, the market will price the company up.

Mirabaud Oil Update
Mirabaud Securities Energy Research
2 March 2011


Petroceltic International
AT-4 flow rate underwhelms
This morning, Petroceltic International (PCI LN, Buy, PT 24p/shr) announced an update on the AT-4 appraisal well in the Isarene Permit in Algeria the first of four planned appraisal wells on the Ain Tsila field. The well was designed to delineate the eastern flank of the field and, as previously reported, encountered a thicker than expected gross gas column of 155 metres with no gas-water contact. PCI added some additional colour today, stating that the well intersected two distinct Ordovician zones, with a deeper gas-down-to level than that currently interpreted across the field. However, after fracture stimulating the two horizons, a disappointing commingled flow rate of 1.35 mmscf/d and 450 barrels of water per day (bwpd) was recorded. The lower zone was subsequently isolated using an isolation packer, and the upper zone tested at 1 mmscf/d of gas and 250 bwpd. This concluded testing operations on AT-4 and the well has been suspended. Elsewhere, PCI added that the next well on the field, AT-5, is preparing to conduct logging ahead of drilling the horizontal section.
The headline flow rate on AT-4 is disappointing and certainly sub-commercial. However, the good news is it almost certainly relates to the design of the fracture programme rather than the geology in the eastern side of the field. The explanation put forward by PCI is that the induced fractures extended below the gas-water contact into the underlying aquifer leading to water production, which in turn inhibited gas flow. In all likelihood, this happened because the company decided to fracture the secondary lower zone lying closer to the gas-water contact rather than focus on the upper zone as in previous wells. Once the connection with the aquifer had been established it compromised the testing of the upper zone as well. Had the company stuck to its original plan and only fractured the upper zone, it seems likely that these issues would not have occurred. Indeed, evidence from the well data suggests that the reservoir properties of the upper zone were sufficient to produce at 4-6 mmscf/d on a standalone basis. Consequently, while the flow test results are a setback, in our view, they have little impact on the wider appraisal project or AT-4s main objective of proving gas-in-place in the eastern flank.
PCI shares have been under pressure in recent days due to the ongoing unrest in North Africa and todays news is hardly likely to help sentiment. Nevertheless, the political situation in Algeria appears to be calmer following recent Government concessions, and we expect plenty of news flow from the drill bit over the coming months, accompanied by tangible progress on the farm-out front. We continue to view PCI as one of the few value plays in the sector, and believe recent weakness on political concerns is overdone. As such, we retain our BUY recommendation and 24p/shr target price.