Ithaca Energy: Hydrocarbons found at Kobbe formation

The presence of hydrocarbons has been confirmed in the Kobbe formation of Ithaca Energy's appraisal well 7725/3-2 in the Norvag discovery, a drilling update has shown.The AIM-listed oil and gas exploration company said that the findings were based on the results of wire line logs and formation tests and cores.Ithaca said that the partnership would perform a drill stem test on the well to assess the quality of the Kobbe reservoir and the volume potential in the northeastern part of the Norvarg closure.Appraisal drilling operations commenced on April 25th and the well is currently being drilled using Ocean's Leiv Eiriksson semi-submersible rig, Ithaca Energy reported. The partners in the licence are Total E&P Norge, the operator with a 40% interest, North Energy, with a 20% stake, Ithaca Petroleum Norge, with a 13% stake, Statoil, with a 10% interest, Det Norske with a 10% interest and Rocksource Exploration Norway with another 7.0% stake.Licence awardIthaca Energy also reported the award of licence PL535B in the 22nd Licensing Round on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. The licence, which covers part of Block 7225/2, is an extension of the existing PL535 licence in which the Norvarg discovery is located. The group said that the licence work programme would follow that of PL535, with both licences having the same partners and working interests.Ithaca Energy's share price was up 1.98% to 116p at 08:49 on Monday.MF