Cabot Energy Regulatory News (CAB)

2 Feb 2005 10:43

Immediate Release 02 February 2005 Northern Petroleum Plc ("Northern" or the "Company") Re. New Application and Drilling Update New Application to Drill in HampshireNorthern has today submitted an Application for Planning Consent for thedrilling of the Hedge End-2 well from a site towards Botley owned by theHampshire District Council. The well will test an oil discovery made in 1988which was cored and logged but not tested, a decision believed to have beentaken due to poor core recovery and the oil market conditions at the time. Morerecently Northern has materially revised the methods for interpretation of logsin the Great Oolite formations in the Weald Basin and as a result believes thatHedge End-1 was an oil discovery of 50 to 125 million barrels of oil in place.The substantial range of the estimates is due to the Hedge End-1 well beingdrilled entirely above the oil water contact. Northern is the licence Operatorholding a 50% interest.Isle of Wight - UpdateNorthern also announces that final agreement has been reached with TheSecretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs regarding the sitefrom which the Bouldnor Copse-1 well will be drilled. Planning Approval havingalready been granted on October 26th 2004.Site clearance work will begin shortly under the control of The ForestryCommission and site construction thereafter on a schedule that should permitthe drilling of Bouldnor Copse-1 immediately following completion of operationsat the Sandhills-2 well-site.The Bouldnor Copse-1 exploration well on licence PEDL 089 in which Northernhold a 70.0% interest will be drilled to test prospects at both Jurassic (GreatOolite) and Triassic (Sherwood Sandstone) levels with an estimate of greaterthan 200 million barrels of oil in place with an upside potential of almost 400million barrels, but extending into three other licences of which Northern isthe Operator holding interests between 57.5% and 66.125%.Northern is also pleased to announce that at the Sandhills-2 site on PEDL 113the main site construction phase is complete. The timing of drilling operationswill be announced once the drilling rig contract, currently under negotiation,has been concluded. Northern will hold a 57.5% interest in the licence.Spain - UpdateNorthern also announces that in Spain, where its 100% subsidiary, NorthernPetroleum Exploration Limited is the Operator and has a 45% interest in theAyoluengo oil field, a programme to perforate previously untapped formationswithin the production intervals has been agreed with partners. The programme isto be undertaken in two phases and involves all of the currently producing oilwells. This is viewed by Northern as a welcomed positive commitment by partnersto increasing production at Ayoluengo in conjunction with an ongoing costcutting programme and could lead to an increase in production of between 25%and 100%. -Ends- For further information please contact,Derek Musgrove, Managing DirectorNorthern PetroleumTel. 020 7743 6080Ben SimonsHansard CommunicationsTel. 020 7245 1100END