http://www.falklands-oil.com/

http://www.rockhopperexploration.co.uk

http://www.argosresources.com/




Rockhopper was established in 2004 with a strategy to invest in and undertake an offshore oil exploration programme in the North Falkland Basin. It was floated on AIM in August 2005. Rockhopper was the first company to make a commercial oil discovery in the Falklands. Today Rockhopper is the largest acreage holder in the North Falkland Basin, with interests in the Greater Mediterranean region.

Falklands-Malvinas
Wednesday, 05 April


Rockhopper 3D seismic survey in North Falkland basin



Rockhopper Exploration plc (Rockhopper) announced Wednesday the signing of a Letter Of Intent with CGG Marine to conduct a 3D seismic survey on its North Falkland Basin acreage.

The survey is planned for the Falklands summer months and is currently scheduled to begin in December 2006.
The survey, which consists of a minimum of 685km2 over licences PL032 and PL033 is aimed at providing further data over a number of promising leads and prospects, and in addition, better definition of the zones from where oil was recovered and gas detected in the 2 wells drilled in 1998.
Licences PL032 and PL033 lie in less than 500m of water and were the subject of 2 wells drilled during 1998, one of which recovered live oil to the surface.
The licences are already covered by 1546 km 2D and 368 km2 3D seismic data and Rockhopper has access to that data. Rockhopper is now targeting a different play type in addition to those early wells, representing an untested oil play.

Sam Moody, Managing Director, commented: We are very pleased to have one of the worlds leading seismic contractors coming to work in the Islands at a time of tight supply for high quality services in the oil sector.

In 2006, we have already completed 2D seismic and CSEM surveys over licences PL023 and PL024, and the completion of this 3D seismic survey will be a further step in progressing our exploration effort.
By acquiring, processing and interpreting this data the Company is taking all available steps to ensure that we have the maximum flexibility in planning a future exploration drilling programme

markymar

I am selecting the shares for the "UPS"
RKH 27 - 30p
It looks like after being mark down heavily lately the buyers are returning at those lower prices, and SP bouncing from support 28p, share price at lower Bollinger Band ( Buy at lower, sell at upper, is the rule), Indicators (RSI and Stochastic) at oversold, as MACD looking ready for the turning, last week signed a Letter Of Intent for a 3D seismic survey on its North Falkland Basin acreage.

Your a brave man, i cant see any news untill late May or early June at the best!

Always the possibility that Desire might find a rig and that would help the share price.

Good luck with your choice Master.

Some slides of Rockhopper

Hydrocarbons Daily Record (05/05/06)
May 4, 2006
by J. Brock (FINN)

HYDROCARBONS DAILY RECORD (05/05/06)



By J. Brock (FINN)



At 1800 LMT on Thursday, 04 May 2006, prices reflected a further decline in the price per barrel with Light Sweet Crude at $69.94 and Brent Crude at $70.29. This reflects the second day of decline.



The decreases come despite Irans firm stance against any UN Sanctions that may arise. Iran has been told by the UN Security Council that it has until June to freeze its uranium enrichment programme. This lessens any immediate nervousness of retaliations on either side.



The fear factor also seems to have diminished regardless of Bolivias nationalisation of its natural gas facilities. A meeting between Venezuela, Bolivia, Argentina and Brazil, that took place on Thursday, may take the sting out of President Morales actions. Brazils oil company, Petrobas, has said that it might not go ahead with a planned natural gas pipeline extension if there is not a successful outcome on Monday. Petrobas stands to lose $1.5 Billion in the long-term if Bolivias sanctions take affect.



The publication on http://www.foreignpolicy.comof an article by Thomas Friedman entitled The First Law of Petropolitics has helped to set the industry at ease and could also have helped in dropping the prices per barrel we have seen recently. Mr. Friedman asserts that as the price of hydrocarbons increase, democracy and freedom decline they seem to run away from each other. President Chavez, he says, wouldnt be telling the oil companies to go to hell if the price per barrel were $20.00. $70.00 makes it a much more attractive option, with basic freedoms for the people being lost as the price of hydrocarbons increase. He points out that the most democratic of countries in the mid-east are the ones with a minimal oil industry.



LOCAL IMPLICATIONS:



The feel-good factor still abounds with the knowledge that any day now a suitable rig could be found by Dr. Colin Phipps of Desire Petroleum Plc. This doesnt mean that we will immediately begin to pump oil as it could take anywhere from 5 to 15 years after viable reserves are found.



New from:http://www.falklands-oil.com

May 2006 - Desire moves to Phase 2 on their PL003 and PL004 licences
Following on from Rockhoppers farm-in to these licences (also known as Tranches C and D), Desire has now moved to Phase 2 of the licences. During this Phase, which runs for 7 years, they must drill one well on each licence.

May 2006 - Changes to PON 1
Some minor changes have been made to PON No. 1, Record and Sample Requirements for Surveys and Wells. These changes require licensees to supply geophysical data in a new specified format if requested to do so. See the Downloads section for details.

April 2006 - Falklands at AAPG
In April the Falkland Islands Government exhibited at the Annual Convention of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists. This years convention, held in Houston, was a success for the Islands, who participated in the International Pavilion for the 11th successive year. The Falklands booth was a busy place of work, with numerous high-calibre visitors from international exploration companies. The Government also again participated in the International Pavilion Theatre, presenting a talk on exploration opportunities in the area. A copy of the presentation can be viewed at AAPGs on-line International Pavilion, at http://www.internationalpavilion.com/Houston_Theatre_pres_06/Falklands_06_files/frame.htm

This link below is a better link if you have power point a lot clearer

http://www.internationalpavilion.com/houston_theater.html

They are on the move up today now 28 - 31p +2.50p

I selected the shares earlier on the UPS.........

"UPS" (Added by Master RSI on Wed 10 May 10:24 am)
RKH - Mid 27.5p
Reason - Now rising from a double bottom on the chart, rumours of DES getting a rig soon should be good news for them, as they have a 7.5% on the NorthFalkland Basin acreage C and D

Further move up this afternoon to 30 - 32p +4p

with a good L2 after WINS gone up on the bid 1 v 1

       LATE LUNCH TIME FUN

Hydrocarbons Daily Record (10/05/06)
May 10, 2006
by J. Brock (FINN)

HYDROCARBONS DAILY RECORD (10/05/06)



By J. Brock (FINN)



Crude oil futures slipped in New York and London today before the release of a US government survey expected to show increasing domestic gasoline inventories.

In London IPE Brent crude was down 23 cents at $70.84 a barrel by 1511 GMT.

At 1343 GMT crude for June delivery was trading down 21 cents at $70.48 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

At 1800 LMT on Wednesday, 10 May 2006 Light Sweet Crude was $71.90 in the price per barrel and Brent Crude at $70.21.



TRENDS:



Even though refineries increased their run rates by 300,000 barrels, making supplies of Gasoline in the United States 347 Million and stockpiles of other hydrocarbons products world-wide, there is nervousness about whether the trend will continue. This is a factor in keeping the crude prices high.



DEVELOPING FACTORS:



(Iran)


Speculation about Irans President Ahmadinejads letter to President Bush is becoming fact with bits and pieces of it being released to the press. There seems to be little relevant to the enrichment of nuclear fuel but it does indicate a way forward for dealing with Iran politically. It is an historic letter, the first since the 1970s. At present Irans President is in Indonesia drumming up support for his position that nuclear fuel enrichment is for energy generation only. It appears that the trip has been successful. More will be known at 0800 LMT on Thursday.


(Russia)


Last night Russias President Putin, in a State of the Union Address, said that he would encourage the increased revenue from hydrocarbons to go towards increasing living standards in Russia. Also singled out for improvement, President Putin wants to improve that countrys energy infrastructure. Russia is the worlds second most productive producer of hydrocarbons behind Saudi Arabia.

(Latin America)

Companies Affected by any new taxes in Venezuela - local and foreign companies such as Spanish-Argentine Repsol YPF, China National Petroleum, the US firm, Chevron and Brazils Petrobras are seeking alternatives to paying newly proposed extraction taxes. The media are stepping up criticism of President Chavez by saying that his plan to buy off the Americas and secure absolute power over Venezuelas oil reserves is frayed and not working. Since President Chavez has begun this policy production has dropped from 3.2 Million barrels per day to 2.5 million barrels and it could be further cut if foreign investors decide to cut their losses. If contracts become unworkable they could pull out, leaving Venezuela to fend for themselves.

Bolivias President Morales is in Vienna for a meeting in Vienna with European officials and hydrocarbons industry representatives. His South American neighbours applaud his desire to give the people revenue from their gas reserves. However, Bolivia wont be able to take it all without keeping the level of investment it presently has.



(Falkland Islands)



Falklands exploration companies stocks rose today as there is optimism that a rig could be available at any time for exploration in the North Falkland Basin.



Falkland Oil and Gas Limited will be presenting a company profile and some data at the oilbarrel.com conference on Thursday, 11 May 2006.



The following Falklands exploration companies had an excellent day on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) today:



Des up 4.75p or 13.5%up


RKH up 4p or 14.8% up results of seismic done early on in the years due near future


BOR up 2.5p or 5.5%up

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing-and-markets/tips-and-tactics/article.html?in_article_id=408974&in_page_id=23

DESIRE Petroleum's exploration work in the Falklands has been hampered by the shortage of drill rigs. Heavy buying which saw it touch 42p before closing 4p up at 40p followed rumours Desire has signed an agreement with a leading oil major and a rig will soon find its way to the oil rich area soon. If true, last year's peak of 65p could be left miles behind.

Rockhopper Books 3D Seismic Shoot In North Falklands Basin
Rockhopper Exploration, which is named after the penguin colonies on the Falkland Islands, has signed up leading seismic contractor CGG Marine to shoot a 3D seismic survey over two of its licences, PL032 and PL0 33, in the North Falkland Basin. The 685 sq km survey is due to get underway in December and is designed to provide further data on a number of promising leads and prospects.

This is ex-Shell acreage and lies in the northern part of the North Falkland Basin. The licences were home to two wells during the much-anticipated Falkland Islands drilling campaign of 1998 which proved such a crushing blow for further exploration of these remote waters. Rockhopper is not alone in believing the explorers of 1998 turned their back on one of the last major untapped oil and gas provinces in the world: Desire Petroleum, Borders & Southern and Falklands Oil & Gas Limited are now seeking to prove up the prospectivity of this region.

Regulars at oilbarrel.coms conferences will be well acquainted with the Falkland Islands story as Falklands Oil & Gas Limited, which holds vast tracts of acreage in the untested waters to the south and east of the islands, has been a popular presenter at past events. Unlike FOGL, Rockhopper is focused on the North Falkland Basin. This has the advantage of providing the company with a database of useful seismic and well data to help unlock the geology the acreage. It also has a drawback: explorers in the North Falklands Basin are tainted by the overhang from the costly disappointments of 1998.

Yet as Rockhopper and others like to point out, the wells drilled in 1998 were far from a disaster. The North Falkland Basin stretches 250 km from north to south and the six wells drilled there all tested the same type of play concept. Of the six, only one failed to find any indication of oil and gas and that duster was never logged because the well collapsed. The most exciting well was Shells test of the Fitzroy structure which recovered live oil to the surface but with a prevailing oil price of US$10 per barrel there was little interest in pursuing an exploration campaign in such a high risk, high cost area.

With oil prices nudging US$70 per barrel, the economics of the south Atlantic look very different today. And the results from the 1998 exploration campaign, coupled with the millions spent by new players such as Rockhopper on new seismic and controlled source electromagnetic surveys (CSEM), have changed the geological understanding of the region.

Rockhopper now believes the 1998 explorers targeted the wrong play type. It plans to use the forthcoming 3D shoot to better define the zones where oil was recovered and gas detected in the two wells drilled in 1998. This information will be used to design a drilling programme that will target those zones and a different play type.


Rockhopper, which joined AIM in August 2005, owns 100 per cent of four offshore licences, covering 5,800 sq km of the North Falkland Basin. These are PL023, 024, 032 and 033. PL023 and PL024 are the most southerly in the North Falklands Basin. Rockhopper has conducted 2D data over the acreage and conducted CSEM over the promising J and K prospects.

This is a new technology designed to give a clearer indication about the presence of hydrocarbons in a structure. Prior to the CSEM survey, petroleum engineering consultant Scott Pickford put the chance of success on J at 19.4 per cent: a successful CSEM reading could double this figure.

Rockhopper also holds 7.5 per cent of Desire Petroleums licences, PL003 and PL004. These blocks contain some interest prospects - Scott Pickford puts the chance of success on the Anna prospect at 21.6 per cent and Desire plans a three-well drilling programme here. The timing of this, however, depends on Desire securing a suitable rig and this is proving problematic given the scarcity of suitable hardware and soaring day rates.

Given these delays, Rockhopper last year decided not to exercise an option to increase its equity in the Desire licences to 15 per cent it stressed the decision was no reflection on its view of the prospectivity of the acreage, pointing out that it farmed into the permits to gain early exposure to drilling, a carrot that was no longer on the table due to rig shortages.

This is a major problem for companies operating in the Falklands. In the current market, rigs are expensive and scarce. Whats more the remote location will ensure a hefty mobilisation and demobilisation fee (during the last drilling campaign it took the partners 74 days to tow a rig to the islands). FOGLs chief executive Tim Bushell, speaking at oilbarrel.coms May conference, put the likely mobilisation fee at US$30 million. He is keen for the explorers in the North and South Falkland Basins to join forces and co-ordinate their drilling plans in order put together a multi-well programme that will be tempting to a rig contractor and enable the companies to share rig and logistics costs.

Rockhoppers brokers Teather & Greenwood expect a shared six-well programme to cost around 50 million (US$94 million), with Rockhopper drilling two wells on its own acreage and participating in a further three as part of its Desire farm-in. This could see Rockhopper picking up around 40 per cent of the drilling bill, equivalent to around 20 million.

Against this, there is the potential of farming out some of its acreage, said the brokers in a research note. Recent transactions have focused around a two-for-one farm in, involving Rockhopper farming out half of its operated wells. The group would then be carried for most of its drilling programme and the cost would decline to 10 per cent of the total drilling bill.

This would be a far more comfortable level for most investors in a company of this size, even for those who enjoy the white-knuckle wildcat thrill afforded by a frontier explorer like Rockhopper.
http://www.oilbarrel.com/home.html

http://www.falklandnews.com/public/story.cfm?get=3935&source=3

Falklands Oil Stocks End of Day Price for the 26.05.06



Desire Petroleum up 0.25p or 0.7% to end the day at 36.75p



Falklands Oil and Gas up 1p or 0.9% to end the day at 1.17.5p



Rockhopper Exploration unchanged on the day 30p



Border and Southern unchanged on the day to stand at 45p

Chairman's Statement

Background
Rockhopper Exploration was established in early 2004 to explore for oil in the
North Falkland Basin. We currently have a 100% working interest in and are the
Operator of 4 licences, PL023, PL024, PL032 and PL033, which between them cover
approximately 5,800 km2. In addition, we have a 7.5% working interest in
licences PL003 and PL004, which are operated by Desire Petroleum. In total, our
net acreage position of over 5,900 km2 currently makes us the largest acreage
holder in the North Falkland Basin.

We are currently in a period of relatively high oil prices and have seen a
significant growth in exploration activity across the world. Access to high
quality acreage is becoming increasingly difficult and expensive while high
quality people and equipment are in high demand and short supply. Against this
background, your board has built up an acreage position of real prospectivity
and value and has also been able to carry out a significant part of the work
programme set out at the time of our listing on the Alternative Investment
Market (AIM), with more work already timetabled for later this year.

Achievements
We completed a successful listing on AIM in August 2005 raising #15 million
before expenses to undertake work on all of our licence areas. We specified at
the time that we would conduct both 2D and 3D seismic acquisition programmes and
consider using other exploration technologies in addition to fulfilling our
commitment to drilling with Desire Petroleum.

The 2D programme has been completed on licences PL023 and PL024 and the 3D
vessel is now secured for licences PL032 and PL033. CGG, one of the world's
leading marine seismic contractors, will undertake the survey. We have also
completed two Controlled Source Electromagnetic (CSEM) surveys in order to give
ourselves greater confidence in the prospects over which they were acquired.
These are the first such surveys ever completed in the Falkland Islands. The
results of these surveys will be fully integrated with all our other technical
studies once they are available.

We are working closely with Desire in moving towards drilling on licences PL003
and PL004 but have experienced a significant tightening in the worldwide market
for drilling units.

Outlook
Once the results of the two CSEM surveys have been fully integrated into the
seismic studies, our knowledge of the southern, undrilled part of the North
Falkland Basin will be taken to a new level.

Processing the new 920km 2D seismic survey data is nearing completion. Once we
have the processed data, we will focus on interpreting and integrating it into
our existing knowledge of the area.

The next active step in our exploration will be the collection of the new 3D
seismic survey in licences PL032 and PL033. Once the data has been acquired,
processing and interpretation will carry the work programme into 2007.

The ultimate test of any exploration is, of course, drilling. To this end, not
only do we have the 7.5% interest in PL003 and PL004, but we are working on our
own 100% acreage with modern seismic techniques and CSEM in order to reduce risk
before committing to a drilling programme. It is our intention to co-operate as
fully as possible with other operators in the region in order to reduce costs
and maximise not only knowledge and experience, but also the chance of success.

We have achieved a great deal in this first year against a background of
increasingly difficult markets for services in the oil sector. We look forward
to being able to present the full results of our new 2D and CSEM programmes
later this year and the results of our significant 3D programme during 2007. At
that point, we will need to consider our funding options should we confirm the
presence of drillable targets in our acreage.

Summary
We remain positive about the prospectivity of the basin as a whole and of our
acreage specifically. We believe a number of completely untested plays remain in
the basin which give a better chance of success than the original drilling
campaign in 1998. The technical work is progressing as anticipated at the time
of the listing and the board as a whole remains strongly supportive of the
management team as we move closer to discovering the real potential of the
basin.

Dr Pierre Jungels CBE
Executive Chairman
5 June 2006

For immediate release: 28 June 2006

And more -

"Electromagnetic Surveys:- Preliminary Report

Rockhopper Exploration plc ("Rockhopper" or "the Company") is pleased to
announce that preliminary results from the Controlled Source Electromagnetic
(CSEM) survey data suggests that resistive bodies co-incident with the mapped
structures are present. Such resistive features, when combined with seismic data
and other technical studies, can be positive indicators of the presence of
hydrocarbons.

Background

Rockhopper contracted Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping plc in January 2006 to
conduct two CSEM surveys over its acreage in the North Falkland Basin during
January and February 2006. The surveys covered prospect J1 and lead K. Those
areas were also the subject of a new 2D seismic survey, also acquired during
January and February 2006.


Both targets (J1 and K) are located in relatively shallow water of less than
200m in licences PL023 and PL024, an undrilled part of the North Falkland Basin
near the Islands representing an independent play type from those plays and
targets in the more northern part of the basin. The targets are both relatively
shallow and this, combined with the shallow water depth, would make any wells
drilled relatively quick and inexpensive should a rig be drilling in the area.

CSEM Preliminary Results

The preliminary results of both surveys have indicated the presence of discreet
resistors in the area of the targets which, when combined with the existing
seismic data, could prove to be a positive indicator of hydrocarbons.

The Directors remain cautious until the next step is complete, which will be to
fully integrate the CSEM results with the new seismic data, which is in the
final stages of data processing. Once this is complete, the Company should have
a more definitive view of the extent of any potential reservoirs. That process
could take several months.

Should the integration confirm the robust physical nature of J1 and support the
interpretation of the resistor as a possible hydrocarbon accumulation, that
target could be moved to the status of a fully drillable prospect without the
need to acquire any additional seismic, subject to all necessary regulatory
consents.

At the time of the Rockhopper Exploration AIM IPO in August 2005, Scott
Pickford, the independent consultants, estimated that the J1 prospect had a P50
of approximately 328 million barrels STOIIP. Lead K was not assessed by Scott
Pickford, but currently has a maximum mapped closure of approximately 29 km2.

Samuel Moody, Managing Director commented:

"While the report from OHM is preliminary and further integration with the new
2D seismic is required, we are greatly encouraged by these initial indications.
This represents a truly significant step forward in the development of licences
PL023 and PL024 as we now have corroborating signs of potential hydrocarbons in
both the seismic data and the CSEM."

"The CSEM surveys are specific to the targets covered and it's therefore
difficult to infer anything from these preliminary indications from J1 and K in
relation to the rest of the basin as a whole. However, it does give us
encouragement that the southern part of the basin is as prospective as the
geologically different central and northern parts, in which we also have
interests and are actively exploring."


NB: This statement has been approved by the Company's geological staff who
include Keith Williams (Exploration Director), who is a Member of The European
Association of Geoscientists & Engineers (EAGE) with over 30 years of experience
in petroleum exploration and management, for the purpose of the Guidance Note
for Mining, Oil and Gas Companies issued by the London Stock Exchange in respect
of AIM companies, which outline standards of disclosure for mineral projects"

http://www.thisisnorthscotland.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=149212&command=displayContent&sourceNode=150624&contentPK=14791529&folderPk=85744

ROCKHOPPER ENCOURAGED BY FALKLANDS OIL SURVEYS
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DAVID TELFER

08:50 - 29 June 2006
Rockhopper Exploration, the London-listed oil and gas explorer which focuses on Falkland Islands waters, said yesterday new surveys had produced positive indications of hydrocarbons in its North Falkland Basin licences.

The company said Aberdeen-based Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping (OHM) had carried out two controlled source electromagnetic (CSEM) surveys over its acreage in January and February.

Targets within the acreage were also the subject of a new 2D seismic survey, also acquired in early 2006.

Rockhopper said preliminary results of both surveys had indicated the presence of "resistors" in the area of the targets which, when combined with existing seismic data, could prove to be a positive indicator of hydrocarbons.

Managing director Samuel Moody said: "While the report from OHM is preliminary and further integration with the new 2D seismic is required, we are greatly encouraged by these initial indications.

"This represents a significant step forward in the development of licences PL023 and PL024 as we now have corroborating signs of potential hydrocarbons in both the seismic data and the CSEM."

CSEM works by transmitting an electromagnetic field into the earth to identify resistive structures.

Hydrocarbons are generally very resistive, and this technique helps to reduce the risk of drilling non-commercial wells.

http://www.oilbarrel.com/home.html
11.07.2006

Rockhopper Exploration Gets Some Encouraging Preliminary Results from Its Controlled Source Electromagnetic (CSEM) Survey On Its Falkland Acreage
Rockhopper Exploration together with Desire Petroleum, Falklands Oil and Gas (FOGL) and Borders and Southern feel that explorers in 1998 were premature in turning their backs on one of the last major untapped oil and gas provinces in the world: namely the Falkland Islands.

Like Desire, which was involved in the 1998 campaign, Rockhopper feels the Falklands are worth another crack. Although it is a long haul between acquiring acreage and drilling for oil, Rockhopper, which is having its first shot at finding oil in this remotest of regions, has received good news about one of the steps on the way in that the preliminary results from a Controlled Source Electromagnetic Survey (CSEM) have proved encouraging.

Unlike Falklands Oil and Gas (FOGL), which is probing in virgin territory in the South Falklands Basin, Rockhopper has set up in the North Falklands Basin, which proved such a disappointment and put a dampener on further exploration for eight years.

There were great hopes for the drilling in 1998. Six wells were drilled back-to-back with Desire having interests in two wells. As Rockhopper and others like to point out, these wells were far from a complete disaster. The North Falklands Basin stretches 250 km from north to south and the wells drilled there all looked the same kind of play concept. Of the six only one failed to find any indication of oil and gas and was never logged. The most exciting well was Shells test of the Fitzroy structure with well 14/10 which recovered live oil to the surface of 27 degree API. Another well, 14/5, also drilled by Shell, had 32 per cent gas at the surface.

For one reason and another, the wells were never tested. Because they were drilled back-to-back there was not time for proper evaluation. The wells were drilled by the majors Shell and Amerada and these have to compete internally for scarce rigs. Why drill in expensive out of the way places when you are on to a better bet with assets in, say, the Gulf of Mexico? Matters were not helped, of course, when in 1998 the oil price had fallen to US$10 a barrel. This made it barely economic to drill for oil anywhere never mind such a high cost/high risk area.

The situation is different now. With oil at US$70 a barrel the economics have been transformed. Explorers believe the source rock regional seal where the wells were drilled prevented upward migration of hydrocarbons. High quality seismic was needed to define traps at deeper levels in the source rock.

Rockhopper, which joined Londons AIM in August 2005, owns 100 per cent of four offshore licences, covering 5,800 sq km of the North Falkland Basin. These are PL023, 024, 032 and 033.

Rockhopper believes the 1998 explorers did indeed target the wrong play type. Recently the company signed up leading seismic contractor CGG Marine to shoot a 3D seismic survey over two of its licences PL032 and PL033. The 685 sq km survey is due to get underway in December and is designed to provide further data on a number of promising leads.

Before the 3D seismic, however, there are other steps which can be taken, notably 2D seismic. Rockhopper has taken on a new tool in the search for hydrocarbons: the Controlled Source Electromagnetic (CSEM) survey. The surveys were conducted on prospect J1 and lead K in block PL023 and PL024.

The CSEM survey works through transmitting an electromagnetic field into the earth, which is modified by the presence of subsurface resistive layers. These changes in the field are measured and the resulting data is processed to provide information on the resistive structure of the subsurface. Because hydrocarbon accumulations are generally very resistive, this method could indicate the presence of oil and gas. The survey has shown there are resistive bodies co-incident with the prospects that had been identified by traditional seismic. The group still has much work to do to incorporate these results with recently acquired 2D seismic.

However, broker Kepler Teather & Greenwood Merrion, for one, believes the survey is very good news for Rockhopper. It says, although far from conclusive, it shows that any reservoir present in the targets could be charged with hydrocarbons and hence will remove significant risks in these prospects. Prior to conducting the CSEM, Scott Pickford (the independent petroleum consultant) had put the chance of success at prospect J1 of being 1 in 5 (although KT&GM believed this could well have been optimistic. This CSEM could lower the risks significantly and make the chance of success as high as 1 in 3. In the competent persons report at the IPO, the J1 prospect was deemed to have potential oil in place of 328 million barrels. On a 30 per cent recovery it would give recoverable reserves of approximately 100 million barrels.

But of course you do not know until you drill. Rockhopper also holds 7.5 per cent of Desire Petroleums licences PL003 and PL004, These blocks contain some interesting prospects and Desire plans a three well drilling programme here as soon as it can. The timing is problematic due to the shortage of rigs. Given these delays Rockhopper last year decided not to exercise an option to increase its equity in the Desire licences to 15 per cent. It stressed the decision was no reflection on its view of the prospectivity of the acreage, pointing out that it farmed in to the permits to gain early exposure to drilling, an option which no longer seems to be on the table.

The shortage of rigs and costs are a major problem for companies operating in the Falklands. Whats more the remote location will ensure a hefty mobilisation and demobilisation fee (during the last drilling campaign it took 74 days to tow a rig to the islands). It may be that the problems will have eased by the time Rockhopper comes to drill and there is always the possibility of farming out to help costs. Meanwhile the CSEM result is a positive boost on the way to drilling.

http://www.rockhopperexploration.co.uk/press/rockhopper_060711.pdf

CSEM update

http://www.thebusinessonline.com/Stories.aspx?Oil%20price%20surge%20inspires%20technological%20revolution&StoryID=EFAFE69F-B530-4A55-BAEF-3BE8C2907590&SectionID=8099C021-87B0-48CA-A5F1-6335FDE21694

OHM had completed their survey by the 23rd July, as per the link above from markymar. If this technology is so unique and efficient, shouldn't we have heard something by now?
In June RKH said that their initial exploration was complete & that results will take a couple of months to collate.
Anyone heard anything?
It is my understanding that ANY confirmed discovery will impact RKH, DES, FOGL and others in the area.

Well, here we are another month later, and................?
Not looking too hopeful.

And a month later:

"Combining all the data and using fairly conservative assumptions leads us to
believe that Ernest, as mapped to the less risky four way closure, could contain
approximately 312 million barrels of oil, of which approximately 100 million
could be recoverable."

Good news at last & probably encouraging for DES & FOGL also.