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28 April 2009
Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd.
("Gulf Keystone" or "the Company")
Successful Spudding of First Well in Kurdistan
Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd. (AIM: GKP), an independent oil and gas exploration and production company with assets in Algeria and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq ("Kurdistan"), today provides the following update with respect to its activities in Kurdistan.
Gulf Keystone is pleased to announce that drilling activities have now commenced in Kurdistan and just before midnight on the 27th April the Company spudded its first exploration well, Shaikan-1, on the Shaikan Block. Drilling is anticipated to take 4 to 5 months to complete.
The Shaikan Block is situated near the city of Dihok, approximately 85 kilometres North-West of Erbil and covers an area of 283 square kilometres. The Shaikan-1 well is being drilled in a proven hydrocarbon area, in reasonable proximity to other successful discovery wells. The Shaikan Block lies directly between the Tawke and Taq Taq oil fields and in an area of active oil seeps. Shaikan-1 is targeting multiple horizons ranging from 600 metres to approximately 3,000 metres in depth. In the event of a discovery well being drilled, the multiple horizons have aggregate anticipated in place reservoir volumes in the range of 2 billion barrels of oil* as estimated by the Gulf Keystone technical team**.
Upon completion of the Shaikan-1 well the commitments under the first phase of the PSC will have been completed with an option to enter into phase 2.
Mr. Todd Kozel, Executive Chairman of Gulf Keystone, commented:
"The spudding of our first well in Kurdistan is perhaps one of the most significant milestones in the Company's history to date. Given the multiple target horizons and the 2 billion barrels anticipated in place reservoir volumes, this is clearly an exciting moment for Gulf Keystone"
Enquiries
| Gulf Keystone Petroleum: | +44 (0) 20 7514 1400 |
| Todd Kozel, Executive Chairman | |
| Ewen Ainsworth, Chief Financial Officer | |
| RBC Capital Markets: | +44 (0) 20 7653 4667 |
| Sarah Wharry | |
| Tristone Capital Limited: | +44 (0) 20 7355 5800 |
| Simon Ashby-Rudd | |
| Majid Shafiq | |
| Citigate Dewe Rogerson: | +44 (0) 20 7638 9571 |
| Martin Jackson |
or visit: www.gulfkeystone.com
Christopher Garrett, the Company's Vice President of Operations, who has over 29 years relevant experience within the sector meets the criteria of a qualified person under the AIM guidance note for mining, oil and gas companies, and has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this announcement. Mr Garrett is a Fellow of the Geological Society, a member of the Petroleum Exploration Society of Great Britain, and a Certified Petroleum Geologist (American Association of Petroleum Geologists).
* Potential oil in place volumes are quoted in reservoir barrels as there is insufficient data to allow estimation of an oil shrinkage factor and a recovery factor.
**Where relevant analogue data was not available the reservoir parameters used are "best estimates" made by GKPL personnel based on their current understanding of the regional geology.