29 Jan 2008 08:09
For immediate release: 29 January 2008
Northern Petroleum Plc Award of Fifth Italian Licence in Southern Adriatic Sea
Northern Petroleum Plc announces that its wholly owned subsidiary, Northern Petroleum (UK) Limited ("Northern" or "the Company"), has been advised of the preliminary award of offshore Italian licence d60F.R-.NP, covering 742 km‚². Northern has been invited to prepare the required environmental impact study which work will now commence.
The award is adjacent to FR39.NP and FR.40.NP and two other preliminary awarded offshore licences. It adds an important area to the Company's already substantial position in the Durres Basin where two of three oil discoveries have been assessed by independent petroleum engineers as having 53.23 million gross Probable Reserves (Northern share: 26.62 million).
In the two fully awarded licences alone the exploration potential has already been assessed at 1.26 to 6 billion barrels oil in place. All but one of these six drillable prospects were recognised and mapped by the previous operator, Enterprise Oil. They remained un-drilled during the period of much lower oil pricing.
The d60, d61 and d149 licences are also seen as having considerable potential given the number of leads and prospects already identified by the Company.
Northern holds a 100% interest in the licence, but a subsidiary of ATI Oil Plc, in which Northern holds a 37.05% equity interest, has a 50% pari passu commercial interest in the licence, giving Northern Petroleum Plc an overall net beneficial interest of 68.52% (36.5 million barrels of Probable Reserves).
In Italy Northern is the operator of 24 licences, preliminary awards and uncontested applications, covering an area in excess of 13,000 km‚², being second only to Eni in acreage under management.
Derek Musgrove, Managing Director of Northern said:
"The Durres Basin in the southern part of the Adriatic is a core area in which we already hold 53.2 million gross and 36.5 million net beneficial barrels of Probable oil reserves and six drillable prospects. I feel that the position still requires recognition.
At small cost we have licensed a contiguous area the size of 15 North Sea Blo cks, acquired access to over 6,000 km of seismic data with three oil discoveries, six very substantial recognised drilling prospects, one with oil reserves both up-dip and down-dip, and a large prospective exploration area in a producing oil and gas province.
The most explored part of the area to date has compelling analogies to the Golden Lane and Poza Rica trend in Mexico which contains the multi-billion barrel Poza Rica field and many others.
This project is a real achievement. I know that our team will develop these opportunities with enthusiasm as it is seldom that one comes across and successfully licenses such established potential."
In accordance with the AIM Rules - Guidance for Mining and Oil & Gas Companies, the information contained in this announcement has been reviewed and signed off by the Exploration and Technical Director of Northern, Mr Graham Heard CGeol FGS, who has over 30 years experience as a petroleum geologist.
For further information please contact:
Northern Petroleum PlcDerek Musgrove, Managing DirectorChris Foss, Finance DirectorGraham Heard, Exploration and Technical DirectorTel: +44 (0)20 7469 2900InvestecMichael Ansell / Paul BrettTel: +44 (0) 20 7597 5000Panmure Gordon & CoKatherine Roe / Ashton ClanfieldTel: +44 (0)20 7459 3600Bishopsgate Communications LimitedMaxine Barnes / Nick RomeTel: +44 (0) 20 7562 3350
NORTHERN PETROLEUM PLC