Malaysia’s Petronas enters Irish waters

Lansdowne Oil & Gas plc has received Irish Government consent to the farm-in agreement entered into last year with PSE Kinsale Energy Limited, a subsidiary of Malaysian oil giant Petronas.

Through the 80% interest and as the operator of SEL 4/07 offshore Ireland, Kinsale Energy will fund 100% of the costs of drilling a well on the Midleton prospect.

Should the well be tested, Kinsale Energy will also fund Lansdowne’s share of the testing costs, up to US$ 2.5 million (net).

According to Lansdowne, Kinsale Energy has started working on well planning and further announcements will be made in due course.

Commenting on the news, Lansdowne CEO Steve Boldy said: “We are pleased to receive the consent from the Irish Government for the farm-out of Licence 4/07 to Kinsale Energy and look forward to drilling the Midleton gas prospect. Much of the focus on Lansdowne’s Celtic Sea assets in the last couple of years has been on the oil in Barryroe and whilst this remains the core of our portfolio, we continue to see great potential in searching for more gas in the basin.

“Gas prices remain robust and security of supply continues to be a concern, so any additional volumes we can discover and bring on-stream will be very valuable.”