Faroe Petroleum Plc Share News (FPM)

(Sharecast News) - Independent oil and gas company Faroe Petroleum announced the commencement of the Cassidy exploration well 8/10-7 S in the Norwegian North Sea on Wednesday, where it has a 15% working interest.The AIM-traded firm said the Cassidy prospect sat within the PL405 Oda licence, and was being drilled back-to-back with the production wells on the Oda structure.It said the well would target a prospect in the same Jurassic Ula Formation as seen in the Oda Field.The co-venturers in the Oda PL405 licence were Faroe at 15%, operator Spirit Energy Norge at 40%, Suncor Energy Norge at 30%, and Aker BP at 15%.Faroe said the total expected vertical depth of the well was approximately 3,056 metres, in a water depth of 66 metres.Drilling operations would be undertaken using the Mærsk Interceptor rig, and the results would be announced on completion of drilling operations."I am pleased to announce the spudding of the Cassidy exploration well situated within tie-back distance of the Oda field, which is on track for first oil in H1 2019," said Faroe chief executive officer Graham Stewart."Cassidy offers high value upside for the Oda field development as well as potential to unlock further exploration prospectivity to the north of the Oda field."Stewart said Faroe's active exploration programme had delivered two commercial discoveries out of three wells so far this year - Iris Hades in Norway, the company's largest discovery to date, and Agar in the UK."The programme is continuing over the coming period, with Cassidy and the Brasse East well currently drilling, a further two wells so far committed for drilling in the first half of 2019, and a steady flow of additional wells being prepared for drilling."