Ireland: AMEC Awarded Ulysses Gas Storage Conceptual Study

Providence Resources P.l.c. , („Providence‟), through its wholly owned subsidiary EIRGAS Limited („EIRGAS‟), is pleased to announce that it has selected international engineering and project management company AMEC to begin a conceptual development study for the ULYSSES salt cavern gas storage project in the Kish Bank Basin, offshore eastern Ireland.

The ULYSSES Project, which commenced in 2008, assessed the natural gas storage and carbon sequestration potential of the Kish Bank Basin, offshore Dublin. The study confirmed a site which may be suitable for the construction of an offshore natural gas salt cavern storage facility.

AMEC, as a leading global provider of project management and engineering services, has extensive experience of similar projects on and offshore where gas is planned to be stored in deep undersea man-made salt caverns. The initial phase of the study includes planning and gas sourcing and is expected to be completed by Q1 2011.

Speaking today, John O‟Sullivan, Technical Director of Providence, said:

“We are delighted to be working with AMEC on the ULYSESS project. We believe they will bring significant value to the project given their proven track record in the delivery of many successfully operating gas storage projects in the UK. This type of high deliverability multi-cycle storage facility could help to underpin Ireland’s significant installed wind generation capacity, whilst also facilitating Ireland’s security of supply requirements as specified by EU directive.”

Speaking today, John Pearson, Managing Director of AMEC‟s Europe and West Africa business said:

“We are excited to be bringing our leadership and expertise in the development of gas storage projects to this promising onshore and offshore development which, if successful, will contribute to the security of supply for Ireland’s future energy needs.”

About Providence

Providence Resources Plc is an independent oil and gas exploration company listed on the AIM market in London and on Dublin‟s IEX market. Providence‟s active oil and gas portfolio includes interests in Ireland (offshore), the United Kingdom (onshore and offshore), the United States (offshore) and West Africa (offshore Nigeria). Providence‟s portfolio is balanced between production, appraisal and exploration assets, as well as being diversified geographically.

About EIRGAS Limited

EIRGAS Limited is a SPV (special purpose vehicle) established by Providence to invest in gas storage and CCS opportunities offshore Ireland and the United Kingdom. EIRGAS is currently owned 100% by Providence.

About AMEC plc

AMEC  is a focused supplier of high-value consultancy, engineering and project management services to the world‟s natural resources, nuclear, clean energy, water and environmental sectors. With annual revenues of over £2.5 billion, AMEC designs, delivers and maintains strategic and complex assets for its customers. The company employs some 23,000 people in around 40 countries worldwide.

About the ULYSSES Project

The Undersea Large-scale Saline Sequestration and Enhanced Storage (or ULYSSES) Project was designed to assess the potential use of Triassic aged saline sandstone reservoir sequences as possible sites for carbon sequestration. The presence of saline reservoirs which are located c. 1.5 km below the seabed together with overlying sealing shale has been demonstrated in a number of oil and gas exploration wells which have been drilled in the Kish Bank Basin over the past c. 30 years. The project area is located approximately 20 km offshore Dublin.

A similar offshore saline reservoir CO2 sequestration project known as Sleipner has been successfully operated in the Norwegian North Sea by StatoilHydro since 1996. This project was designed to offset carbon tax liabilities estimated to be c.US$50 million/year. StatoilHydro reported in April 2008 that it had already sequestered 10 million tonnes of carbon dioxide since project start-up. Other partners in the Sleipner Project include ExxonMobil and Total.

Kinsale Energy Limited operates Ireland‟s only gas storage facility at the SW Kinsale Head field, offshore Cork. This facility, which has been operational since 2001, has a storage capacity of 8 BSCF. The Irish Governmental Green Paper on Energy recommends that Ireland should have at least 3 months of reserve/storage capacity which equates to c. 45 BSCF.

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Source: Providenceresources,September 17, 2010,