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Providence see huge potential in Rathlin

Thursday, January 24 10:35:02

Irish oil and gas explorer, Providence Resources, today said it believes its prospects in the Rathlin Basin, between Ireland and Scotland, has the potential for over 500mln barrels of oil.

It said that newly acquired data, from an airborne survey, has revealed a number of prospective structures within the P1885 and PL 5/10 licences in the basin.

Among them is the Polaris prospect. This prospect is located in the Rathlin Sound - the body of water that separates the Antrim coast and Rathlin Island - and it is said to be 'coincident' with a significant structural feature that's imaged on vintage 2D seismic.

Providence also highlights that Polaris is also on-trend with the onshore Ballinlea-1 well, where 'good quality' oil was recovered to surface in 2008.

The new data indicates that Polaris is a 'large areally extensive structure', spanning 30 square kilometres, and it has now made an initial volumetric estimate of the prospect, at 530mln barrels of in-place.

Speaking today, John O'Sullivan, Technical Director of Providence, said the company is upbeat about the prospects for the field.

"We continue to be very encouraged by the results of the recent FTG programme, which has exceeded our pre-survey expectations. The Rathlin Basin has always been considered prospective due to the presence of a rich oil prone source rock, however poor seismic imaging has historically rendered it difficult to determine the basin's true hydrocarbon entrapment potential. We believe that our application of new technologies such as Full Tensor Gradiometry should allow for a complete re-assessment of this frontier basin. We have now commenced planning for a future drilling programme in 2014, which includes necessary site investigations, local permitting requirements together with regulatory and local stakeholder liaison."

"This planned drilling operation forms part of Providence's ongoing multi-basin drilling programme which commenced last year with the successful appraisal of the Barryroe oil field, offshore southern Ireland. Drilling operations planned for 2013 include the upcoming deepwater exploration well on the Dunquin prospect, an appraisal well on the Spanish Point gas condensate discovery and an exploration well in the Kish Bank Basin. In 2014, we plan to drill an exploration well on the Polaris Prospect and an appraisal well on the Dragon gas field".