Serica Energy Regulatory News (SQZ)

10 Oct 2006 12:00

Serica Energy plc10 October 2006 SERICA ENERGY PLC FARM-OUT OF UK BLOCK 54/1b & UK DRILLING PROGRAMME London, October 10, 2006 - Serica Energy plc (AIM and TSX Venture: SQZ)announces that it has concluded a farm-out of part of its interest in UK NorthSea Block 54/1b, where it expects to commence drilling the Oak prospect laterthis month. Serica will also commence drilling of an exploration well on theColumbus prospect in Block 23/16f during the fourth quarter of 2006. In the Southern Gas Basin, the ENSCO 92 jack-up rig will drill the Oak prospectin Block 54/1b, targeting the Permian-aged Leman sandstone reservoir at a depthof around 7,500 feet. Drilling operations are scheduled to take about 30 days.Serica is the operator of the Block and the well will be drilled under acontract with Peak Well Management Limited As part of its strategy to spread exploration risk and manage costs, Serica willreduce its interest in Block 54/1b from 100% to 50% through the farm out of a50% interest to Centrica Resources Limited ("Centrica"), a wholly-ownedsubsidiary of Centrica plc, in consideration for Centrica bearing 100% of thecosts of drilling the Oak well up to the point where the total costs havereached £8.5 million or a decision to test the well has been made, whicheveroccurs first. In the Central North Sea, the semi-submersible GlobalSantaFe Rig 140 will drillthe Columbus prospect in Block 23/16f, in which Serica has a 50% interest,targeting the Paleocene-aged Forties Sandstone reservoir at a depth of around9750 feet. Drilling operations are scheduled to take about 30 days. The wellwill be drilled by Applied Drilling Technology Inc. (ADTI), a division ofGlobalSantaFe Corporation, under a contract with Serica's partner in Block 23/16f, Endeavour Energy UK Limited. Chris Atkinson, Chief Operating Officer, commented: "The next 12 months will be an exciting period for Serica with intensivedrilling across our assets targeting a range of prospects in terms of risk andreward. This includes exploration wells on Block 54/1b and Block 23/16f in theNorth Sea this year and exploration and development wells in Indonesia in 2007." "The farm out in Block 54/1b reduces drilling costs and exploration risk to theCompany ahead of the drilling of the Oak prospect, and we welcome Centrica asour new partner in the Block." Background Notes Serica Energy plc is an international oil and gas exploration company withoperations in Indonesia, the UK North Sea, Spain, Ireland and Vietnam. TheCompany's ordinary shares are listed in London on AIM and on the Canadian TSXVenture Exchange under the symbol "SQZ". The 2005 Annual Report and Accounts areavailable at www.serica-energy.com and www.sedar.com. Enquiries: Serica Energy plcPaul Ellis, pellis@serica-energy.com +44 (0)20 7487 7300Chief Executive OfficerChris Hearne, chearne@serica-energy.com +44 (0)20 7487 7300Finance Director Pelham Public Relations -UKJames Henderson james.henderson@pelhampr.com +44 (0)20 7743 6673Alisdair Haythornthwaite alisdair.haythornthwaite@pelhampr.com +44 (0)20 7743 6676 CHF Investor Relations - CanadaJan Moir jan@chfir.com +1 416 868 1079 x237Heather Colpitts heather@chfir.com +1 416 868 1079 x223 Forward Looking Statements This disclosure contains certain forward looking statements that involvesubstantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties, some of which are beyondSerica Energy plc's control, including: the impact of general economicconditions where Serica Energy plc operates, industry conditions, changes inlaws and regulations including the adoption of new environmental laws andregulations and changes in how they are interpreted and enforced, increasedcompetition, the lack of availability of qualified personnel or management,fluctuations in foreign exchange or interest rates, stock market volatility andmarket valuations of companies with respect to announced transactions and thefinal valuations thereof, and obtaining required approvals of regulatoryauthorities. Serica Energy plc's actual results, performance or achievementcould differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forwardlooking statements and, accordingly, no assurances can be given that any of theevents anticipated by the forward looking statements will transpire or occur, orif any of them do so, what benefits, including the amount of proceeds, thatSerica Energy plc will derive there from. The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. To receive Company news releases via email, please contact heather@chfir.com and specify "Serica press releases" in the subject line. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange