Ophir Energy Hires Drillship for West African Drilling Program

Ophir Energy plc has secured a rig for its West African drilling campaign starting in Q1 2014.

Rig secured for West African 2014 multi-well campaign

Ophir has agreed heads of terms for a deep water drill ship for its operated multi-well West African drilling programme in 2014. A total of six firm plus additional contingent slots have been agreed. The programme is scheduled to commence in Gabon in early February 2014 with drilling of the c.1.0 bnbbl pre-salt Padouck Deep prospect on the Ntsina Block. The second well is expected to target the Affanga Deep prospect on the Gnondo Block with the third well likely to be the pre-salt Okala prospect on the Mbeli Block. Further details of the later drilling sequence and rig details will be provided in due course.

Portfolio rationalisation: Congo, Madagascar and Somaliland update

Rationalisation of Ophir’s portfolio and a focus of resources onto the core assets continues. Following earlier exits from the DRC and Uganda, Ophir has recently exited its position in the Marine IX block in Congo Brazzaville.

In Madagascar, Ophir has informed the Government of its intentions to relinquish operatorship and its interest in the Marovoay Block (2012).

In Somaliland, the company has reduced its stake from 75% to 25% by entering into an agreement to farm-down a 50% stake and operatorship in the Berbera Blocks SL9 and SL12 in return for a carry of the Company’s remaining 25% share in a planned seismic programme.

Nick Cooper, CEO, commented:

“We are pleased to have secured a rig that enables our 2014 West African drilling programme to commence in early February. This programme will run in parallel with our ongoing drilling activites in East Africa using the Deepsea Metro I drillship and means we now have confirmed rig slots secured for our next twelve months of drilling, targeting prospects with unrisked potential that is a multiple of our discovered resource base. We have also continued to rationalise the portfolio to focus resources on our core, material assets; recently exiting or scaling back our positions in Congo, Madagascar and Somaliland.”

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Press Release, September 23, 2013