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.

Lets wait for the next RNS from DES before jumping in the deep end, if the news is poor you know what the sp will do.

By the reaction on the share price, it could be some of the shareholders in DES are switching to RKH now as the rig is moving to Sea Lion

From the FT.com        MARKET REPORT - SMALL CAP

Desire Petroleum dropped 49.5 per cent to 50p after disappointing test results from its first well in the north Falklands basin.

That news also hit the other Falkland explorers. Rockhopper, which is looking for oil in the same basin, fell 15.9 per cent to 45p while Borders & Southern, which is exploring to the south of the islands, lost 5.9 per cent to 55p.

But some analysts remained positive on Desire. On balance, while the market may have been looking for seagull-scorching test results, it should be borne in mind that this is the first of a potential six-well programme by Desire, said Seymour Pierce.

It is encouraging that initial indications suggest that potentially all the ingredients reservoir, trap and hydrocarbons are present in the general area.

For DES perhaps most of the bad news might be already in the price...50% lower than friday...blimey !...and another 5 wells to go minimum....and there is that RKH classified discovery...most people have forgotten about that....

"Rockhopper is next to drill after Desire, and Sam Moody, Rockhopper's managing director, said that the company believed that the Sea Lion prospect could contain 150m to 200m barrels of recoverable hydrocarbons, probably oil.

"This is one of the best prospects we have so that's why we're drilling it next," he told the Financial Times.

He said that the Sea Lion prospect would not be "particularly deep". Desire said that gas had been found in the Liz prospect but more testing was needed.

He expected drilling to start at Sea Lion a week after completion of Liz. The two prospects are 50km apart."


http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2facb164-3b92-11df-a4c0-00144feabdc0.html

good rise today sensible switching from DES after disappointing drilling results.

I think I am right in saying that DES drilled their 'best prospect' first. RKH now doing the same. Should this also turn out to be a duster, I wouldn't be surprised to see a large number of investors seek better prospects elsewhere. Success here is now critical, imo.

as has been often said, drilling for oil is an inexact and high risk science .... in fact, this first hole was not exactly a duster and just may have much more useful info attaching than is apparent to us laymen .... for sure, the market accepted it with relative equanimity

60p this am.

Harrycat, RKH have done CSEM over Ernest.

I would say Ernest is their best one, and thats not first as Sea Lion is.

They will now be refining the drill based on the data shares from Desire from LIZ and hopefully it going to be another hydrocarbon hit here.

Your post #552 says that this is 'one of the best'.
I still think that success on one of the first two drills is critical for investor support.

http://www.pennenergy.com/index/petroleum/exploration-and-production/display/2923430149/articles/oil-gas-journal/exploration-development-2/discoveries/2010/04/desire-has_two-zone.html

Desire has two-zone gas find north of Falklands


By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Apr. 6 -- Desire Petroleum PLC is plugging its Liz 14/19-1 well in the North Falkland basin as a natural gas discovery in two zones.

Early log analysis indicates the well cut 17 m of net hydrocarbon pay at 2,961-3,031 m in an overpressured, mainly sandstone, reservoir that appears to contain wet gas. A hydrocarbon sample and formation pressures were recovered. No water leg is indicated, and much work is needed to determine reservoir quality, trapping mechanism, and hydrocarbon potential.

The well also recovered dry gas below 3,400 m from a poor-quality reservoir in a pressure regime different from the shallower zone. The rock type and reservoir potential are uncertain. Total depth is 3,667 m.

Desire said, The Liz fan was encountered between 2,540 and 2,568 m. Good oil shows were recorded while drilling but logging and sampling confirmed that this reservoir interval was tight. It is believed the Beth fan was also penetrated between 2,654 and 2,672 m also with oil shows in tight reservoir. In both fans, work will now try to determine whether better quality reservoir may be developed updip.

The company also noted weak oil shows in conglomeratic zones at 2,706-2,932 m.

The well didn't reach the deepest play type in the prerift, and it wasn't suspended for later tests because it wasn't designed to test overpressured gas.

Liz was the first well in a multiwell campaign to explore the North Falkland basin. Rockhopper Exploration will now drill two wells in the North Falkland basin and BHP one in the East Falkland basin before the rig returns to Desire for further drilling later in the year.

Desire's Chairman Stephen Phipps said: "This well has proved complex and highly encouraging. Hydrocarbons have been found in two separate intervals, the geological model for the basin has been confirmed and at least two petroleum systems have been drilled, with hydrocarbon shows recorded over a wide interval. More sandstone was encountered than expected but typically of poor quality. However new reservoir targets have been identified and the challenge will be to predict where these may occur in better quality.

This well has provided some promising results, gas has been discovered at two levels and the prospectivity of the basin has been greatly enhanced. We now intend to carry out technical work to assess and analyze the information that we have obtained from this well and we are very much looking forward to resuming the drilling campaign later in the year.


Source:Oil & Gas Journal

Sea Lion must be due to spud shortly as this is supposedly not a deep well results should be known fairly quickly.

There should be news of a update v soon,good to see you have your eye on the ball Halifax....a few more days

the next one must be the big one!

Rockhopper Exp plc
Sea Lion 14/10-B Exploration
RNS Number : 2962K16 April 2010

Sea Lion 14/10-B Exploration Well Spud

Rockhopper Exploration plc (AIM: RKH), the North Falkland Basin oil and gas exploration company, is pleased to announce that the Sea Lion 14/10-B Exploration well was spudded at 0050hrs BST on 16 April 2010.

The Sea Lion prospect is located on Licence PL032 which is 100% owned and operated by Rockhopper.

The well is being drilled to an estimated target depth of circa 2,700 metres. Drilling operations are expected to take approximately 34 days and a further announcement will be made once drilling is completed.

Sea Lion is being drilled using the second rig slot in the overall drilling programme. The Company currently intends to drill its Ernest prospect (100% Rockhopper) using the fourth slot.

-Ends-

Enquiries:

Rockhopper Exploration plc
Sam Moody - Managing Director
Tel. +44 (0)20 7920 2340 (via M: Communications)

M: Communications
Patrick d'Ancona or Ben Simons
Tel. +44 (0)20 7920 2340

let's hope they don't piss on their chips then

A pretty dismal response from the sp, compared to the euphoria which accompanied the DES spudding!

now i wonder why!

I think it is mainly due to the mention of 34 days, as there have been several posters on other sites stating about 2 to 3 weeks.