LONDON (Alliance News) - Frontera Resources Corp Tuesday said the amount of gas-in-place at the Mtsare Khevi Gas and Taribani Field Complexes in Georgia could be more than ten times higher than previously thought as the company reported a wider pretax loss in the first half of 2015.
The oil and gas company reported a USD4.6 million loss in the first six months of 2015, widening from the USD3.4 million loss a year earlier as revenue experienced a small fall to USD3.2 million from USD3.3 million.
The wider loss was mainly caused by operating expenses rising to USD7.7 million from USD6.6 million after administrative costs and depreciation, depletion and amortisation costs rose.
At the Mtsare Khevi Gas Complex, Frontera said the drilling and workover operations continue in accordance with previously announced eight well drilling program and 18 well workover programme for the remainder of 2015. The programme is designed to continue to add new gas production as well as access gas production from extensive unperforated/behind-pipe gas-bearing intervals in existing wells.
"Together with ongoing well operations, expansion of existing processing facilities is underway and it anticipated that these operations will bring daily gas production in excess of 7 million cubic feet per day by the end of this year," said Frontera.
At the South Kakheti Gas Complex, Frontera said new geologic and geophysical studies have continued within and between the Mtsare Khevi Gas Complex and the Taribani Field Complex areas as the company believes that these individual areas are geologically interconnected.
Those studies have confirmed an extensive integrated gas resource potential much larger than the prospective 12.9 trillion cubic feet of gas-in-place at the Mtsare Khevi Gas Complex and Taribani Field Complex, of which 9.4 trillion could be recovered, previously identified.
Frontera's recently concluded studies estimate as much as 135.0 trillion cubic feet of gas-in-place from reservoir targets found between 300 metres and 5,000 metres in depth. An independent assessment of Frontera's new internal estimates will now commence during the fourth quarter of 2015.
At the Taribani Field Complex, Frontera is preparing to test and produce the first of several oil-bearing zones associated with the Niko-1 well. A recent assessment by US-based firm Ryder Scott has shown the well contains around 483,554 barrels of oil or condensate and 197.0 million cubic feet of gas of probable reserves.
The well is considered to have possible reserves totalling over 1.1 million barrels of oil or condensate and 1.14 billion cubic feet of gas.
In addition, during the first half of 2015, an eight well campaign to re-entry frac/re-completion campaign commenced within the field and is currently ongoing. This campaign is targeting Zones 9, 14 and 15 and is designed to also enhance oil production from the Taribani field.
Frontera shares were trading down 8.2% to 0.73 pence per share on Tuesday afternoon.
By Joshua Warner; joshuawarner@alliancenews.com; @JoshAlliance
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