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LONDON (Alliance News) - Rockhopper Exploration PLC Tuesday said an independent audit has been carried out over the company's resources lying within its operations offshore the Falkland Islands, and said it believes there is much more oil and gas to be found in the area.
Rockhopper is working with fellow London-listed company Premier Oil PLC offshore the Falkland Islands, where the pair are progressing the major Sea Lion development and the Isobel Elaine area together. A third partner, Falkland Oil & Gas, was taken over by Rockhopper last year.
Rockhopper Tuesday said ERC Equipoise Ltd has carried out the independent review of the resources lying within both projects with Premier Oil, showing the substantial amounts of crude that the pair hold offshore the Islands.
Premier Oil shares were also trading up on Tuesday morning following the release.
The stock tank oil-initially-in-place within the Sea Lion complex has been estimated at 1.66 billion barrels of oil, of which 834.0 million barrels would be net to Rockhopper. The discovered STOIIP within the Isobel Elaine complex stands at 277.0 million barrels, of which 177.0 million barrels would be net to Rockhopper.
2C resources within Sea Lion has been estimated at 517.0 million barrels of oil with 258.0 million of those barrels net to Rockhopper whilst 3C resources is forecast to total 900.0 million barrels, of which 452.0 million barrels is net to Rockhopper.
Once gas is added, the total 2C resources at Sea Lion amounts to 747.0 million barrels of oil equivalent, with 392.0 million barrels being net to Rockhopper. The total 3C resources with gas amounts to 1.46 million barrels of oil equivalent, with Rockhopper entitled to 798.0 million of those barrels.
At the Isobel Elaine complex, the 2C resources for Isobel stands at 20.0 million barrels, 13.0 million of which is net to Rockhopper.
"The ERCE Audit has confirmed over half a billion barrels of 2C oil resources in the reservoirs that together make up the Sea Lion Complex including the reservoirs discovered in the Zebedee well. These resources are intended to be developed in two phases, the first of which will develop the resources in the north-east and north-west of the SL10 and SL20 fans," said Rockhopper.
"In the Isobel/Elaine Complex, where data collection was compromised for operational reasons, ERCE has evaluated the Discovered STOIIP for each of the fans and attributed Contingent Resources to the Isobel Deep (F3H) fan from which significant oil was recovered to surface," the company added.
"In addition to the discovered resources, management believes there are a large number of near field prospects in the attractive and relatively low risk Isobel/Elaine appraisal area for which estimates of STOIIP and oil prospective resources have been made," said Rockhopper.
Rockhopper shares were up 4.2% to 38.03 pence per share on Tuesday morning.
Notably, Premier Oil shares were also trading up 3.1% on Tuesday morning to 79.90 pence per share.
By Joshua Warner; joshuawarner@alliancenews.com; @JoshAlliance
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