Trapoil Buys More Stake in Surprise/Nutmeg Discoveries

On 1 May 2013, Trapoil agreed to acquire an additional 85 per cent working interest in Licence P.1267 (Blocks 12/25a & 13/21b) containing the Surprise and Nutmeg oil discoveries, from Dana Petroleum (E&P) Limited (“Dana”) in accordance with the terms of the joint operating agreement previously entered into by the parties in respect of Licence P.1267, following Dana’s decision to withdraw from the Licence.

The Surprise/Nutmeg discoveries are located in the Moray Firth Basin in the Central North Sea and contain proven oil in the Early Cretaceous Coracle and Punt Sandstone reservoirs with gross recoverable resources estimated by the Company’s management to be in the order of approximately 12 million barrels of oil. Trapoil currently plans, upon receiving formal approval by DECC as an approved operator, and, subject to securing the requisite funding, to proceed to drill a single sub horizontal deviated appraisal well to seek to establish commercial flow rates from the Coracle reservoir. If successful Trapoil would then aim to progress the asset to the field development plan stage.

Completion of the Acquisition is conditional upon, inter alia, receipt of the requisite DECC approval, third party consents and finalisation of the assignment documentation following which the working interests of the remaining partners in Licence P.1267 will become Trap Oil Limited (90 per cent. and operator), First Oil Exploration (North Sea) Limited (5 per cent.) and First Oil Expro Limited (5 per cent.) There are currently no work programme commitments outstanding to either DECC or the partnership.

Mark Groves Gidney, Chief Executive Officer of Trapoil, commented:

“Increasing our equity position in the promising Surprise asset will enable the group to secure operatorship, subject to DECC’s approval, and therefore assume greater control over the scheduling of potential future activities to further progress this appraisal asset towards development.”