Last checked at 
LONDON (Alliance News) - Block Energy PLC on Monday said it started a fully funded workover programme at its Norio oil field in Georgia, eastern Europe, to scale up production rapidly by the end of 2018.
The exploration & production company plans to carry out two workover campaigns on eight wells through the fourth quarter of 2018 and the first quarter of 2019 at the field, using an A50 rig and a specialist perforation tool imported from North America.
Block Energy said it will begin the workover programme with preparation work on four of the eight wells, with each expected to take five to seven days to complete.
Following the completion of preparation work, a perforation technology, selected to bypass any damage caused by historic heavy mud drilling, will be applied to each well, the company said.
After that, Block Energy said it will install new or refurbished pumps to bring the wells to production.
The company expects to complete the workover of all eight wells by the end of the first quarter of 2019, with the aim of rapidly scaling Norio's production from 10 to 150 barrels of oil per day.
In a separate statement issued on Monday afternoon, the company added that its intention is to undertake an additional sidetrack at the field after completing these workovers, to bring Norio's production to 250 bopd.
Looking forward, Block Energy said it is also preparing to drill horizontal sidetracks and test a legacy gas discovery in the Lower Eocene at its West Rustavi field, also in Georgia.
"The commencement of our operations today is the culmination of a great deal of hard work by the team and the gateway to an exciting future for the company and our stakeholders," said Chief Executive Paul Haywood.
Block Energy shares were trading 4.7% higher on Monday at 3.03 pence each.
