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January 06, 2010
Aminex Starts 2010 With A Bang As Likonde-1 Readies To Spud This Week
Backers of Aminex plc now have just days to wait until the long-awaited first well on its highly prospective Ruvuma PSA in Tanzania. The company had hoped to spud this well in Q3 2009 but delays ensued after new operator, Tullow Oil, undertook a technical review of the seismic and switched the well location from the Mikindani prospect to the Likonde prospect.
The delay worked in Aminex’s favour, not only turning up a robust prospect that excites the Tullow team – good news given that company’s run of exploration success elsewhere in Africa – but also providing additional time for London-listed Aminex to strike farm-out terms. Although Aminex had the funds available to fund its share of the drilling costs, the Q4 farm-out to Solo Oil, reducing its equity from 50 per cent to 37.5 per cent, is a sensible risk management tactic and will help conserve cash going forward. The deal will see Solo earn a 12.5 per cent interest in the well in return for paying 12.5 per cent of Aminex’s back costs (about US$1.25 million) and 18.75 per cent of the Likonde-1 drill costs (US$3.4 million).
This is important because Aminex has a busy work programme lined up and every dollar will be useful. First, there is the Likonde-1 well, which is now due to spud on January 7. It will drill to a total depth of 3,200 metres and should take about two months to complete. The Likonde prospect is described as a “robust faulted rollover structure” with targets in the Tertiary, Cretaceous and Permo-Trias Karoo formations. It has the potential to hold 500 million barrels of oil in place with estimated P10 recoverable reserves of more than 150 million barrels. Aminex gives the drill a one in four chance of success.
Next up will be drilling in the US, on the company’s promising Shoats Creek field in Louisiana, which has low risk targets in the shallow Frio and Cockfield sands (less than 10,000 feet) and high impact but difficult-to-drill deep exploration targets in the Wilcox formation. Aminex is gearing up to drill its first two development wells in the Frio and Cockfield sands, with the first well, targeting the Cockfield sands, due to spud in late January. The Frio well will most likely be spudded in March, pending regulatory approvals and weather conditions in this wetlands area. These two wells are targeting proved undeveloped reserves and could be quickly brought into production as existing pipelines cross Aminex’s property.
The company is seeking farm-in partners to drill the deep Wilcox play and hopes to conclude these negotiations in order to drill later this year. The deep Wilcox sands have proven to be prolific producers elsewhere and could be a material addition to the Aminex portfolio.
Elsewhere in the US, the company plans to drill Sunny Ernst-3 on the Alta Loma field in Texas, either in spring or summer. It will drill up proved reserves and is a logical follow-on from the company’s successful Sunny Ernst-2 well, which proved so successful in 2008, finding 60 feet of reservoir in the S sand. A recent workover on Sunny Ernst-1, a much older well with limited production, has proved unsuccessful and the well has been temporarily suspended.
In Egypt, further newsflow is due from the West esh el Mellaha-2 concession, where the company is participating in the South Malak-1 well. This well was difficult to drill with the very tight rocks failing to flow hydrocarbons despite high gas readings and oil shows. The formations are in the process of being hydraulically fractured but this is turning out to be a lengthy process and there is no guarantee it will result in commercial production. Aminex is a 10 per cent carried partner in this project with its costs fully carried through to commercial production so this is a no-risk project.