Ascent Resources Regulatory News (AST)

16 Jun 2009 07:00



Ascent Resources plc / Epic: AST / Index: AIM / Sector: Oil and Gas

16th June 2009

Ascent Resources plc ('Ascent' or 'the Company')

Gazzata-1 Update

Ascent Resources plc, the AIM-traded oil and gas exploration and production company, through its wholly owned subsidiary Ascent Resources Italia srl, is preparing to plug and abandon the Gazzata-1 well in Italy's Po Valley.

The Gazzata-1 well reached a total depth of 2,840m and despite drilling a series of sand and shale sequences, the interpretation of the wireline logs that were run yesterday did not indicate the presence of commercial gas reserves. Otto Energy of Australia, through their farm-in agreement with Ascent, have earned a 50% working interest in the future exploration of the 728 square kilometre Cento and Bastiglia permits by funding the cost of the well. Gazzata-1 was drilled with the HH-200 rig of Perazzoli Drilling (22.5% Ascent owned), on schedule and within budget.

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Glossary

HH-200 Drillmec 200 tonne diesel hydraulic drilling rig

For further information visit www.ascentresources.co.uk or contact:

Notes

Ascent Resources plc has a diversified portfolio of some 20 hydrocarbon exploration and development projects across five countries in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, Hungary, Slovenia and Netherlands. Ascent's portfolio contains a solid base of field redevelopment projects with selected exposure to exploration upside. The portfolio is focussed on gas and with the exception of the shallow water Netherlands project, all of its projects are located onshore where operating and development costs are substantially lower than they are offshore. Ascent also has an oil and gas asset management joint venture with San Severina Holdings SA, a Swiss based investment company, which is focused on acquiring minority interests and providing investment funding for producing and development or appraisal stage oil and gas projects.