Baron Oil Plc (LON:BOIL), the AIM-quoted oil and gas exploration and appraisal company, has announced that, as a joint venture non-operating partner, it has submitted an application in the UK offshore 33rd Round of licensing, conducted by the UK North Sea Transition Authority. The Licensing Round attracted 115 Bids across 258 Blocks or Part-blocks.
The application, following technical screenings of the areas made available in the Licensing Round, is in line with the Company’s stated strategy of acquiring significant equity stakes in potentially high impact oil and gas exploration and appraisal prospects at low entry costs and which would enhance the Company’s existing assets. It is anticipated by the NSTA that offers to award licences will be announced during the second half of 2023.
TL-SO-19-16 PSC, offshore Timor-Leste (the “Chuditch PSC”; 75% Interest, operated)
On 24 October 2022, Baron provided a technical update resulting from its preliminary interpretation of the Chuditch PSC reprocessed 3D seismic data and announced that reservoir consultancy group ERCE had been engaged to prepare a Competent Person’s Report.
The ERCE CPR will provide Baron with independent, SPE PRMS compliant standard, resource estimates for the Chuditch-1 discovery and offset prospects and leads. Baron continues to work intensively with ERCE on the subsurface technical understanding which lies behind the resource calculations and the Company expects the ERCE CPR to be completed during February 2023.
As indicated previously, the Company anticipates that Contingent Resources will be assigned to the Chuditch-1 gas discovery, which should have a significantly positive impact on the value of the Chuditch Project.
As such the ERCE CPR will form an important component in the Company’s continuing efforts to attract additional industry partners to participate in the next phase of the Chuditch PSC.
UKCS P2478, offshore Inner Moray Firth (32% Interest, non-operated)
As announced on 15 November 2022, the technical work programme over the Dunrobin and Golspie complex of prospects is now largely complete, and Baron is working with the licence operator, Reabold North Sea, to complete the re-evaluation of Prospective Resources and potential commerciality of any future discovery.
The Baron Oil board reaffirms its belief that the western part of the Dunrobin complex is potentially a drillable prospect where an initial exploration well on the P2478 licence could target approximately 100 MMbbl of gross Mean Prospective Resources (non SPE PRMS compliant). Due to the shallow nature of an exploration well on Dunrobin West (approximately 800 metres total depth), gross drilling costs to test such a substantial volume are likely to be modest at approximately £8 million. In addition, success on Dunrobin West would de-risk potential follow ups on Dunrobin Central, East and Golspie analogous prospects.
A joint farmout campaign is underway and we look forward to announcing the results of the subsurface re-evaluation during February 2023.
