LONDON (Alliance News) - San Leon Energy PLC on Wednesday said gas shows were seen at the Laayoune-4 well in Morocco and said the well was drilled on time and on budget, as it posted a wider pretax loss for the first half.
San Leon said drilling at Laayoune-4 showed gas within the reservoir section of the drill hole, and the well has now been suspended pending further studies and to allow future re-entry. The company is planning to acquire a 3D seismic survey of the prospect and may consider re-entering the well based on the results of this survey.
"We are very pleased with the results of the Laayoune-4 well. Confirming the presence of gas shows and good reservoir quality is encouraging for the potential of the block and leads naturally to applying for a new eight year licence in the area, which would allow for seismic acquisition to be performed over the full channel complex," said Executive Chairman Oisin Fanning.
The well results came as San Leon said its pretax loss in the first half to the end of June was EUR8.3 million, compared to EUR6.8 million a year earlier, due to higher financing costs related to its GBP29 million fundraising.
The company reiterated it has received an approach in late August from a potential bidder for the company, but said there remains no certainty any deal will be done.
Shares in San Leon were down 0.6% to 58.00 pence on Wednesday.
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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San Leon (SLE)