‘Material milestone’ reached in Sea Lion project financing

UK-based oil and gas company Rockhopper Exploration has said that the preliminary information memorandum (PIM), which will form the basis of a loan application for the Sea Lion senior debt project financing, has been submitted to potential senior lenders. 

The Sea Lion project, located in the North Falkland basin, is operated by Premier with a 60 percent stake. Rockhopper is a partner in the 520 mmbbls project with a 40 percent working interest.

Rockhopper said on Tuesday that the PIM submission was supported by a comprehensive set of independent expert reports covering technical, reservoir, HSSE, legal, and tax aspects of the Sea Lion project.

As part of the submission process, the company appointed lender due diligence advisers including financial and legal advisers.

Sam Moody, CEO of Rockhopper, said: “The submission of the PIM marks a material milestone in the project financing process for the Sea Lion development.

“Should the application be well received, we anticipate moving into a phase of detailed lender due diligence and documentation during the fourth quarter of 2019.”

The Sea Lion complex will be developed in two phases. Phase 1 will recover 220 mmbbls of reserves in the northeast and northwest of the field located in the PL032 license area. The development concept entails subsea wells tied back to a leased FPSO.

FEED on Sea Lion phase 1 was completed during 2016. As part of this, Premier optimized the facilities design and installation methodology of the development. As a result, Premier reduced its estimate for gross capex to first oil from $1.8bn to $1.5bn.

Spotted a typo? Have something more to add to the story? Maybe a nice photo? Contact our editorial team via email.

Also, if you’re interested in showcasing your company, product or technology on Offshore Energy Today please contact us via our advertising form where you can also see our media kit.