RPT.L Regulatory News (RPT)

3 Feb 2005 07:00

Regal Petroleum PLC03 February 2005 Immediate Release 3 February 2005 REGAL PETROLEUM PLC ("Regal") Exploration Blocks Awarded - Liberia The Directors are pleased to announce that Regal has been successfully awardedan interest in two exploration blocks in Liberia. In October 2004 Regal, together with European Hydrocarbons Limited ("EHL"),(hereafter jointly referred to as the "Liberia consortium") submitted a bidapplication to the National Oil Company of Liberia ("NOCAL") for certainoffshore exploration blocks. Regal has now been notified that the bidapplication was successful and that the Liberia consortium has been awarded twocontiguous exploration concessions (Blocks 8 and 9) for an initial period ofthree years, with a right to extend for a further four years. The applicationfee was US$10,000. In accordance with the terms of the bid application theLiberia consortium has acquired a licence to a substantial 2D seismic datapackage at a cost to the Liberia consortium of US$960,000. Under the terms of the award the Liberia consortium has seismic work commitmentsof US$4.5 million and US$4 million for the two concessions respectively and nodrilling commitments. Negotiations with NOCAL to finalise the terms for theproduction sharing agreement will commence shortly. Offshore Liberia is one of the last virtually unexplored frontiers of theprolific West African offshore area. It is known to have working petroleumsystems, similar to those found in oil producing basins along the West Africanmargin, and large already identified structural and stratigraphic traps. Withthe application of modern 3D seismic data for exploration, drilling successrates in West Africa have been high, with several recent discoveries. Acquiringmodern 3D data to evaluate these blocks is the most cost effective way to maturea portfolio of large prospects for drilling, and to decrease exploration risksignificantly before the commencement of drilling. Regal and EHL have 25% and 75% interests respectively in the Liberia consortium.EHL is a privately owned company in which both Regal and Frank Timis,Executive Chairman, hold beneficial interests. Frank Timis, Executive Chairman, commented: "We are very excited with the awarding of this new Liberia interest as itprovides us with further diversity on our existing portfolio and should addsignificant upside in the future. There has been a string of recent discoveriesin West Africa and we hope to share in this success by applying 3D seismicduring the exploration stage." 3 February 2005 For further information, please contact: Regal Tel: 020 7408 9500Frank Timis, Executive ChairmanRoger Phillips, Finance Director Buchanan Communications Tel: 020 7466 5000Bobby Morse / Ben Willey Notes to the Editors: Regal Petroleum plc is a London based independent oil and gas producer listed onthe Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange with ambitiousgrowth plans. Regal is focused on the exploration, development and production ofoil and gas assets in Ukraine, Greece, Romania and Egypt. In the Ukraine, Regal has a 100% interest in two adjacent licence areas(Golotovschinska, Mekhediviska and Svyrydivske) in the prolific Dneiper-Donetsbasin in 1999. This basin is located in north-east Ukraine and currentlyproduces 90% of Ukraine's gas and condensate. Independent reservoir expertshave estimated that Regal's licence areas contain a combined total of 25 billioncubic metres of proven and probable gas reserves and 5.8 million cubic metres ofproven and probable condensate reserves. In October 2003 Regal successfully acquired its first interest in Kavala OilS.A. ("Kavala") and in January 2005 it announced that it had increased thisinterest up to 95%. Kavala exclusively operates oil, gas and sulphur productionfacilities (including an onshore processing plant) in the North Aegean Sea.Kavala has been granted an exclusive right by the Greek State to undertakepetroleum exploration, exploitation and production operations in the Prinos,Prinos North, Epsilon and South Kavala fields and the Kallirachi oil discovery. During 2003 Regal successfully tendered for two large exploration, developmentand production concessions, the Suceava Block and the Barlad Block, making Regalthe largest foreign holder of concessions by acreage in Romania. In January2005, Regal announced that the Barlad Licence had been formally approved. Regalhas a 100% interest in the 4,103km2 Suceava Block and the 6,285km2 Barlad Block.These licence areas are located in north-east Romania in the highly prospectiveMoldavia Platform, which contains several large commercial gas and condensatefields. In Egypt, Regal has been finally assigned an interest in certain petroleumexploration and production rights in the East Ras Budran Area, Gulf of Suez,Egypt. The concession area is in one of the most prolific petroleum provincesin the world. Surrounding oil fields nearby include Ras Budran, October, AbuRudeis, Belayim Onshore and Belayim Offshore, which range from 270 millionbarrels to over 1 billion barrels of recoverable reserves. The East Ras Budran concession area contains four large prospects identifiedfollowing the evaluation of existing data. The prospects have the potential forsignificant oil reserves. An independent study will be completed in due course. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange