15 Jan 2014 07:00
15 January 2014
Greka Drilling Limited
("Greka Drilling" or "the Company")
China Drilling Order
Greka Drilling Limited (AIM: GDL), the largest independent and specialized unconventional oil & gas driller in Asia, is pleased to announce that its customer Green Dragon Gas Ltd, as part of its overall plan to drill 150 LiFaBriC wells in 2014, has made an initial order for Greka Drilling to drill the first 10 LifaBriC wells of the program.
The estimated value of the order is approximately US$15 million and will involve 5 rigs being mobilized in February 2014, after the Chinese New Year. The timing of the order is welcome as the first quarter is traditionally slow for drilling operations in the region as a result of adverse weather conditions.
LiFaBriC is an adaptation of the horizontal drilling methods traditionally used for drilling in coal seam reservoirs and is designed to provide a precise and high quality well completion technique. Through rigorous pre-engineering of each well, engineers are able to use geo-steering techniques to gain a far greater surface area exposure to the coal seam, optimize exposure to natural cleating, penetrate permeability barriers and reduce overall time, risks and costs associated with traditional reservoir stimulation methods.
Randeep S. Grewal, Chairman and CEO of Greka Drilling, commented:
"We expected to conclude 2013 with a significant backlog going into 2014 and indeed we do. While the first quarter will be predominately a ramping up period, the quarters following should be robust. Two customers confirmed so far for 2014, could demand up to 250 wells drilled while we expect to conclude additional incremental orders with our other Chinese clients.
This contract is a great start to 2014 for Greka Drilling. Confirmation of this, along with the announcement of Greka Drilling's entry into India, highlights how important the next 12 months will be for the business and for all of our stakeholders.
The efficiencies and scale of our existing rig fleet enable us to deliver on all the planned workload at this time. Additionally, we are able to service more than one contract and geography at a time and we look forward to regularly updating our shareholders on a consistent basis in 2014."
For further information on Greka Drilling, please refer to the website at www.grekadrilling.com or contact:
Stephen Hill, VP Corporate Communications Greka Drilling
|
+852 3710 0108 |
Dr Azhic Basirov / David Jones Nomad Smith & Williamson
| +44 20 7131 4000 |
Steve Baldwin / Nicholas Harland Broker Macquarie Capital (Europe)
| +44 20 3037 2000 |
James Henderson / Rollo Crichton-Stuart Investor Relations Bell Pottinger
| +44 20 7861 3232 |