ADX Increases Stake in Kerkouane Permit

- ADX Increases Stake in Kerkouane Permit

Friday, September 09, 2011
ADX Energy

ADX Energy Ltd is pleased to announce a Sale and Purchase Agreement has been executed to buy back a further 10% interest in the Lambouka Prospect Area in the Kerkouane Permit from PharmAust Limited and to cancel the option of PAA to purchase an interest in that part of the Lambouka prospect that extends into Italian waters.

The key terms of the sale are as follows;

Upon payment of US$50,000 by PAA to ADX, ADX will issue to PAA 1,000,000 ADX shares

As part of the consideration ADX will also forgive outstanding past joint venture costs owed by PAA to ADX totalling $400,473.

The transaction is subject to Joint Venture pre emption.

ADX farmed out a 10% interest in the Lambouka Prospect Area to PAA in early 2010 to provide funding for the Lambouka #1 well. The Lambouka-1 well intersected a gas column interpreted based on comprehensive LWD (logging while drilling) and a wireline logging data set which was recovered during the drilling of the well. Unfortunately due to instability of the borehole while drilling and evaluating Lambouka, it was not possible to test the well.

Lambouka is located approximately 70 km North East of onshore Cap Bon in the Sicily channel. The Dougga gas condensate discovery is located approximately 22 km SSW of Lambouka.

Upon conclusion of this transaction ADX will hold a 60% interest in the Lambouka Prospect Area. ADX holds a 100% interest in the remaining Pantelleria License area, over which some Kerkouane participants have options, and the Kerkouane Permit area. ADX operates all licenses and has recently announced the award of the adjacent offshore exploration permit d 364 C.R-.AX in Italian waters acquired at 100% equity interest.

ADX is pleased to have the opportunity to further increase its interest in Lambouka on favourable terms. ADX believes Lambouka and the nearby Dougga discovery represent a material appraisal and development opportunity for ADX.

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MWCC's First Non-Member Gets Permit Approval

- MWCC's First Non-Member Gets Permit Approval

Wednesday, September 07, 2011
Marine Well Containment Co.

Marine Well Containment Company (MWCC) announced that Petrobras America Inc. (PAI) is the first non-member to have cited MWCC's system to receive an approved drilling permit.

PAI contracts with MWCC for the right to cite the MWCC system in its permit application to the Bureau of Ocean Energy, Management, Regulation and Enforcement for a deepwater well in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.

The agency approved the PAI application on September 2 to drill a development well at its Cascade field approximately 180 miles south of the Louisiana coast in water depth of 8,200 feet.

"MWCC is a not-for-profit, independent organization available to all deepwater U.S. Gulf of Mexico operators," said Chief Executive Officer Marty Massey. "Even if an operator is not a member of MWCC, our system can be made available on a well by well basis and cited in respective applications for permits to drill."

The MWCC member companies include Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, Apache, Anadarko, BHP Billiton, Statoil and Hess. These 10 companies operated approximately 70 percent of deepwater wells drilled in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico between 2007 through 2009.

All MWCC members have equal ownership, with each paying a proportional share of the system development and operating costs. System equipment and services are available to members and can be made available to non-members for use in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.

An expanded containment system is on track for delivery in 2012. In addition to operating in water depths up to 10,000 feet, the system will have the capacity to capture up to 100,000 barrels of fluid and handle up to 200 million cubic feet of gas per day.

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Premier Oil Granted Drilling Permit in North Sea

- Premier Oil Granted Drilling Permit in North Sea

Wednesday, September 07, 2011
Norwegian Petroleum Directorate

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has granted Premier Oil Norge AS a drilling permit for well 9/1-1 S.

Well 9/1-1 S will be drilled from the Bredford Dolphin drilling facility in position 57°35'37.02"N and 4°00'56.05"E.

The drilling program for well 9/1-1 S concerns the drilling of a wildcat well in production license 406. Premier Oil Norge AS is the operator with a 40 percent ownership interest. The other licensees are Skeie Energy AS with 40 percent and Spring Energy Exploration AS with 20 percent. Production license 406 was awarded in APA 2006.

The area in this production license is located in the southeastern part of the North Sea. It consists of parts of blocks 8/3, 9/1, 17/12, 18/10 and 18/11. Well 9/1-1 S is the first exploration well to be drilled in this production license.

The drilling permit is contingent upon the operator securing all permits and consents required by other authorities before commencing the drilling activity.

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BOEMRE Unveils New Development, Permit Tools

- BOEMRE Unveils New Development, Permit Tools

Tuesday, August 30, 2011
BOEMRE

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) Director Michael R. Bromwich today announced that the bureau has developed and implemented several new tools to help offshore oil and gas operators improve their exploration and development plan and permit applications. These tools will allow offshore operators to better track their submissions and improve the quality and completeness of their applications, which will decrease processing delays.

“We continue to meet with operators individually and in large groups on a frequent basis. We take very seriously requests for additional information and additional clarity regarding our plan and permit review process. Recently, we have been asked to identify the most common errors and the most frequently-encountered reasons for plan and permit applications to be returned to operators,” said Director Bromwich. “Our goal is to reduce the amount of back and forth with plan and permit applications and to help the industry learn from the best practices that many operators have developed to submit successful applications. That will result in higher quality applications in the first instance and reduce the need for them to be returned to operators. We will continue to search for additional ways to improve our own processes and make them more efficient, without in any way modifying or relaxing the more stringent safety and environmental rules we have implemented over the past year.”

For a complete list of BOEMRE’s reforms to date, go to:
http://boemre.gov/ReorganizationRegulatoryReform.htm

With respect to permits, BOEMRE has added a new feature to its online application system (eWells), which allows authorized users to track the status of permit applications. This allows operators to follow where their application is in the processing system. This increases transparency and provides greater predictability for operators.

With respect to plans, BOEMRE has announced a new online resource to help operators improve the accuracy of their exploration plan (EP) and development operation coordination document (DOCD) submissions. The website offers fact sheets and documents to assist offshore operators in submitting complete applications, which will decrease processing delays. Guidance includes a fact sheet that offers information on how operators can submit stronger applications, frequently asked questions on the specific elements of a successful submission, and a new EP/DOCD checklist that can be used to ensure the inclusion of needed information in an operator’s application. The page is online at: http://www.gomr.boemre.gov/homepg/plans/index.html.

Today’s announcements were shared with more than 200 offshore industry personnel at a workshop held by BOEMRE in its Gulf of Mexico Regional office. The full-day workshop includes a discussion of common errors and omissions found in the submission of permit applications, and overviews and updates on sub-sea containment and the bureau’s well screening tool. One highlight will be an industry panel that will discuss proven methods and strategies for the completion of fully compliant permit applications focusing on the well screening tool, a critical aspect of the sub-sea containment requirements which is most often a cause of returned permit applications.

These improvements in the permit and plan review process are consistent with other reforms in the process that have recently been implemented. In early June, BOEMRE announced specific improvements to the permit application and review process, including the publication of a permit application checklist to assist offshore oil and gas operators in submitting complete applications to drill. The bureau also implemented a requirement that BOEMRE personnel conduct completeness checks before beginning an in-depth, substantive review of the application. This allows staff to capture the major gaps in the submission early in the review process. In addition, we developed clear permit review priorities that will expedite our review. For more information, go to:
http://www.boemre.gov/ooc/press/2011/press0603.htm.

BOEMRE has approved 113 deepwater permits for 34 unique wells that require subsea containment since an applicant first successfully demonstrated containment capabilities in mid-February. There are currently 17 permits pending and 22 permits have been returned to the operator with requests for additional information, particularly information regarding containment. Additionally, BOEMRE has approved 45 permits for activities including water injection wells and procedures using surface blowout preventers. Only 1 of these permits is pending and 1 permit has been returned to the operator for additional information.

BOEMRE has also approved 69 new shallow water well permits have been issued since the implementation of new safety and environmental standards on June 8, 2010. Permits have averaged more than 7 per month since fall 2010, compared to an average of 8 permits per month in 2009. Just 13 of these permits are currently pending; with 10 having been returned to the operator for more information.

For more information on permit approvals, go to:
http://www.gomr.boemre.gov/homepg/offshore/safety/well_permits.html

For more information on plan approvals, go to:
http://www.gomr.boemre.gov/homepg/offshore/safety/well_plans.html

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Statoil Granted Drilling Permit in North Sea

- Statoil Granted Drilling Permit in North Sea

Thursday, August 18, 2011
Norwegian Petroleum Directorate

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has granted Statoil a drilling permit for well 16/2-9 S, cf. Section 8 of the Resource Management Regulations.

Well 16/2-9 S will be drilled from the Transocean Leader drilling facility at position 58°54'46.39"N 02°26'22.80"E following completion of drilling of wildcat well 16/2-8 for Statoil in production license 265.

The drilling program for well 16/2-9 S concerns the drilling of a wildcat well in production license 265. Statoil Petroleum AS is the operator with an ownership interest of 40 percent. The other licensees are Petoro AS with 30 percent, Det norske oljeselskap ASA with 20 percent and Lundin Norway AS with 10 percent.

The area in this license consists of part of block 16/2. The well will be drilled about 12 kilometers northwest of well 16/2-8 (Aldous Major South) in the central part of the North Sea.

Production license 265 was awarded on April 24, 2001 (North Sea Awards 2000). This is sixth well to be drilled in the license.

The permit is contingent upon the operator having secured all other permits and consents required by other authorities before the drilling starts.

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NPD Grants OMV Drilling Permit in Norwegian Sea

- NPD Grants OMV Drilling Permit in Norwegian Sea

Monday, August 15, 2011
Norwegian Petroleum Directorate

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has granted OMV Norge a drilling permit for well 6407/5-2 S in the Norwegian Sea, cf. Section 8 of the Resource Management Regulations.

Well 6407/5-2 S will be drilled from the Borgland Dolphin drilling facility at position 64°35'4.4" north and 7°36'48.7" east after completing drilling of wildcat well 31/8-1 for E.On Ruhrgas Norge in production license 416.

The drilling program for wellbore 6407/5-2S concerns the drilling of a wildcat well in production license 471. OMV Norge AS is the operator with an ownership interest of 50 percent. The other licensees are Norwegian Energy Company ASA (30 percent) and Sagex Petroleum Norge AS (20 percent). The area in the license consists of the blocks 6407/2 and 6407/5. The well will be drilled about ten kilometers west of the Mikkel field.

Production license 471 was awarded on February 29, 2008, in APA 2007. This is the first well to be drilled in the license.

The permit is contingent upon the operator securing all other permits and consents required by other authorities prior to commencing the drilling activity.

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Canadian Quantum Acquires Interest in Indian O&G Canada Permit

- Canadian Quantum Acquires Interest in Indian O&G Canada Permit

Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Canadian Quantum Energy Corp.

Canadian Quantum has acquired a 50% interest in an Indian Oil and Gas Canada Permit with Sundance Energy Corporation acquiring the other 50%. The acquisition covers all available P+NG rights underlying the Alexander First Nations Reserve, located in Central Alberta. The Alexander First Nation Permit is comprised of 6,946.17 gross hectares (17,365 gross acres) or approximately 27 sections of land. Sundance, as operator, is in the process of configuring an extensive 3D seismic program that will be shot as soon as possible. The Alexander First Nation lands have the potential for multi-zone light oil and natural gas production at relatively shallow depths with existing infrastructure in the area.

Canadian Quantum's President and CEO, Douglas Brett stated "We are excited to have acquired such a large land position in an area where another oil and gas company has recently announced a discovery well from a zone that we have mapped as being potential on the Alexander First Nation lands."

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Pacific Rubiales Receives Environmental Permit for Quifa Wells

- Pacific Rubiales Receives Environmental Permit for Quifa Wells

Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp.

Pacific Rubiales announced that Colombia's Ministry of the Environment recently granted the Company the requisite environmental permits for Quifa Southwest and Quifa North. The environmental permit for Quifa Southwest was granted on June 2, 2011, and the permit for Quifa North was granted on June 24, 2011 (collectively, the "Permits"). The Permits affirm that Pacific Rubiales can continue its development drilling campaign in Quifa Southwest and proceed with its exploration drilling campaign in Quifa North.

The exploration program is aimed at incorporating drilling results into an updated National Instrument 51-101 compliant reserves report. The Company's exploration program for the second half of 2011 in the Quifa North area includes 3 exploratory and 13 appraisal wells in prospects Q, F, P and Z, while in Quifa Southwest the drilling campaign includes a total of 52 wells (32 vertical and 20 horizontal).
With this drilling campaign, the Company expects to reach a gross production target of 60,000 bbl/d at Quifa Southwest and Quifa North, by the end of 2011. Details of the campaign will be provided to the market on a timely basis.

The Ministry of the Environment is currently conducting an administrative investigation in the Block. Such administrative investigations occur on a routine basis in the ordinary course of business with respect to the execution of the Company's various projects. In response to recent media reports in Colombia, the Company wishes to make clear that the current administrative investigations will not produce material consequences to the Company's current operations in the Block.

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Bowleven Gets Exploratin Extension at Etinde Permit

- Bowleven Gets Exploratin Extension at Etinde Permit

Friday, July 08, 2011
BowLeven plc

Bowleven announced the following update on activities on the Etinde Permit, offshore Cameroon.

Highlights

• One year extension to Etinde PSC exploration phase
• Cameroon LNG project progressing; gas sales term sheet signed by Etinde joint venture and SNH/GDF Suez
• Sapele-2 testing program ongoing; update now expected in around two weeks

Etinde PSC Extension

In accordance with the provisions of the Etinde PSC, Ministerial approval has been received from the Government of Cameroon for a one year extension to the exploration phase of the Etinde PSC (to December 21, 2012). The Etinde Permit comprises blocks MLHP-5, 6 and 7 and planning for continuing exploration and appraisal activities during 2012 across the Etinde Permit is already underway.

Cameroon LNG

The GDF Suez and SNH initiative to advance the monetization of the substantial undeveloped gas resource within Cameroon via an in-country gas aggregation scheme to supply an LNG facility is progressing. On June 30, 2011, GDF Suez, SNH and the Etinde joint venture signed a term sheet that includes the principles intended to govern the sale and purchase of gas to the proposed LNG facility.

Sapele-2 testing program

The Sapele-2 well was drilled to appraise both the Lower and Deep Omicron discoveries and a testing program is ongoing. Mechanical difficulties, which have now been resolved, were encountered during testing activities and consequently results are now expected in around two weeks.

Kevin Hart, Chief Executive of Bowleven, commented, "We are delighted with progress made in securing an exploration extension for Etinde and in agreeing outline terms for the sale of gas to the proposed Cameroon LNG facility. The Etinde PSC extension allows us to maintain momentum in pursuing our dual strategy of targeting high impact exploration in Cameroon whilst also focusing on converting resources to reserves. We eagerly await the test results from Deep and Lower Omicron at Sapele-2."

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OMV Wins Exploration Permit in Taranaki Basin

- OMV Wins Exploration Permit in Taranaki Basin

Wednesday, July 06, 2011
OMV

OMV New Zealand announced the award of the Petroleum Exploration Permit 53537 in the Taranaki Basin. OMV New Zealand holds a 65% interest in the permit and is the operator. Octanex NZ Ltd holds a 35% interest.

PEP 53537 is located west of PEP 51906, which is also held by the same Joint Venture partners. The OMV-operated Maari oilfield lies 25 km to the southeast of PEP 53537.

"OMV has been involved in the Taranaki region since first coming to New Zealand in 1999 and it remains a cornerstone of our New Zealand operations, in terms of both production and exploration," Peter Zeilinger, OMV New Zealand's Managing Director, stated.
PEP 53537 work commitments include 2D and 3D seismic acquisition and reprocessing in the first 18 months, followed by technical studies. A "drill or drop" commitment is due by July 5, 2013.

OMV and Octanex are currently nearing completion of their seismic survey in the adjacent permit PEP 51906. It is intended to commence a 2D seismic survey in PEP 53537 immediately thereafter, using the same seismic vessel.

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NPD Grants Statoil Drilling Permit in North Sea

- NPD Grants Statoil Drilling Permit in North Sea

Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Norwegian Petroleum Directorate

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has granted Statoil Petroleum AS a drilling permit for well 16/7-10, cf. Section 8 of the Resource Management Regulations.

Well 16/7-10 will be drilled by the drilling facility Ocean Vanguard at position 58º 29' 56.56" N, 02º 01' 31.42" E, following completion of wildcat well 30/11-8 A for Statoil in production license 035.

The drilling program for well 16/7-10 concerns the drilling of a wildcat well in production license 569. Statoil is the operator with a 59.6 percent ownership share. The other licensees are ExxonMobil with 30.4 percent and Total with 10 percent.

The area in the license comprises the southwestern section of block 16/4. The well will be drilled about 10 kilometers northeast of the Volve field in the central section of the North Sea.

Production license 569 was awarded on February 4, 2011 (APA 2010). This is the first well to be drilled in the license area.

The permit is contingent upon the operator having secured all other permits and consents required by other authorities before the drilling starts.

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NZOG Granted Permit in Gulf of Gabes

- NZOG Granted Permit in Gulf of Gabes

Wednesday, June 15, 2011
New Zealand O&G Ltd.

NZOG (New Zealand Oil & Gas Ltd) has been granted a permit in the Mediterranean's Gulf of Gabes, an established oil and gas producing region off the coast of Tunisia.

A formal signing agreement involving Tunisia's Minister of Industry and Technology, the Director-General of Energy, and the Chairman of the state owned petroleum company, took place in Tunis this morning.

NZOG Chief Executive David Salisbury traveled to Tunis for the signing ceremony. He says NZOG has been assessing opportunities in Tunisia since 2008.

"NZOG's strategy is to grow our business through exploration and acquisition in New Zealand and by establishing a couple of new core areas outside of New Zealand.

"During NZOG's search for suitable overseas opportunities, our attention has returned repeatedly to Tunisia due to its combination of good prospectivity, established exploration and production activity levels, reasonable fiscal terms, and ease of doing business.

"Through our screening process we identified an attractive overlooked oil prospect in an open area of the Gulf of Gabes. In August last year we submitted a permit application and have been working with the Tunisian authorities since then to finalize arrangements. I'm delighted that we have been successful and can now further assess this opportunity."

A two year prospecting permit has been awarded, with priority rights to apply for a subsequent four year exploration permit.

The Diodore permit extends over an area of 1,236 sq km in the relatively shallow (<100 meters) water depth of the southern Gulf of Gabes.

The permit is surrounded on all sides by discovered and producing oil and gas fields. David Salisbury said it is a very productive region which will add diversity to NZOG's exploration portfolio through access to lower risk opportunities. "Tunisia gives us diversity, by adding a lower risk/smaller reward core area to our portfolio.

The exploration targets tend to be of moderate size - so do not generally attract the interest of the really big industry players - but the likelihood of striking oil is typically higher than what we experience in New Zealand.

"In particular, with our newly acquired permit, adjacent producing fields prove that there is an active regional oil source - what we need to do is identify the structures where oil may be trapped."

David Salisbury says the move towards more open democracy in Tunisia enhances its attractiveness as an investment destination.

"We have made a number of visits to Tunisia, engaged very capable local representatives and are already well linked in with government agencies and other oil companies that already have a presence in the region. We are appointing an experienced explorationist as our country manager and are in the process of opening a Tunis office."

The Prospecting Permit provides an exclusive right for two years, requires no well commitment, and gives NZOG a priority right to apply for an Exploration Permit but with no commitment to do so.

NZOG's work program during the two year Prospecting Permit period is focused on processing and analyzing existing data and acquiring 350km of new 2D seismic data. The cost commitment for NZOG is approximately US $3MM. David Salisbury said the permit provides an entry point to assess other Tunisian opportunities.

"This is a further step in a long term growth strategy. We are already in discussions with other companies regarding their Tunisian interests. Establishing an initial foothold in Tunisia allows us to focus on identifying further opportunities for exploration or asset acquisition."

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Zion O&G Applies for Israel Exploration Permit

- Zion O&G Applies for Israel Exploration Permit

Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Zion O&G Inc.

Zion O&G announced that on June 13, 2011, the Company submitted an application to the Israeli Petroleum Commissioner's Office, requesting the grant of a new petroleum exploration permit area adjacent to Zion's Joseph License area. The new permit application has been named by Zion, the "Asher-Joseph Permit Application".

The Asher-Joseph Permit Application area covers approximately 80,000 acres of land and is to the west and south of Zion's Joseph License area. It is onshore Israel and traverses a section of land, adjacent to the coastline, between Haifa and Tel Aviv. The grant of a permit would allow us to conduct, on an exclusive basis through a specified period, preliminary investigations to ascertain the prospects for discovering petroleum in the area covered by the permit. Unlike a license area, where test drilling may take place, no test drilling is allowed on a permit area.

Zion's Chief Executive Officer, Richard Rinberg, said, "We have three applications for new exploration areas pending before the Israeli Petroleum Commissioner's Office: the Asher-Joseph Permit, the Zebulun Permit and the Dead Sea License.

"We continue to implement our exploration and drilling program and build on our progress to date. If granted the new exploration areas, we intend to acquire additional seismic and other geological and geophysical data, as we work towards refining potential drilling prospects.

"Currently, drilling operations at our Ma'anit-Joseph #3 well continue. We have reached our target depth of approximately 19,357 feet (5,900 meters), in the Permian geologic layer in Northern Israel, and are now preparing for open-hole wireline logging operations, planned to commence this week. Depending on the outcome of our wireline logging and subsequent interpretation, we may determine to drill this well deeper."

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Sound Oil Farms-In to Montemarciano Permit

- Sound Oil Farms-In to Montemarciano Permit

Tuesday, June 07, 2011
Sound Oil plc

Sound Oil announced that, through its majority held subsidiary Apennine, it has concluded a Farm-In Agreement with Servizi & Assistenza Ricerche Petrolifere spa (SARP) to acquire an interest in the Montemarciano Permit located in Ancona Province, central Italy. The permit is currently operated by SARP with 100% working interest.

Under the terms of the Agreement, Apennine will pay SARP €215,000 ($290,000) as a contribution to past expenditures and fund the 100% cost of the Casa Tiberi-1 exploration well up to €800,000 ($1,080,000) to earn a 75% working interest in the permit and the Operatorship.

The well will be drilled to 700m to evaluate potential gas-bearing sands in the Lower Pliocene Cellino Formation. Fugro-Robertson Limited (FRL) has prepared a Competent Person's Report on the prospect and identify Base Case (P50) prospective resources of 5.7 Bscf, with High Case (P10) prospective resources of 14.9 Bscf. The geological chance of success is calculated at 35%. On a success case basis the potential value (NPV10) of the project is assessed to be $11.6 million for the Base Case and $37.1 million for the High Case.

All necessary approvals to drill the well from the relevant authorities have already been received by SARP. Work on the construction of the Casa Tiberi wellsite will commence as soon as land access is finalized. It is anticipated that the well will be drilled in 3Q-4Q this year.

Commenting on the above, Gerry Orbell, Chairman of Sound Oil said, "This deal gives us an early opportunity to drill a very low cost well to explore for gas resources which if successful in the P50 case should provide near term cash flow and in the high case will have a considerable impact on our assets base. The well will be drilled as an addition to the existing operations program, using funds previously raised by the Company earlier in 2011."

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BOEMRE Improves Efficiency of Permit Review Process

- BOEMRE Improves Efficiency of Permit Review Process

Friday, June 03, 2011
BOEMRE

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) Director Michael R. Bromwich announced that the bureau is putting in place significant improvements in the oil and gas permit application process. These improvements include the publication of a permit application checklist to assist offshore oil and gas operators in submitting complete applications to drill; the implementation of completeness checks by BOEMRE personnel before significant staff time is spent reviewing the application; and the development of clear permit review priorities that will expedite agency reviews.

"We are constantly looking for ways to create a smarter, more efficient, and more transparent permit review process," said Director Bromwich. "Our goal is to make the process of submitting permit applications easier, reduce the time it takes to review permits and improve BOEMRE's communication with operators during the permit review process. We will continue to search for additional ways to improve our processes without in any way modifying or relaxing the more stringent safety and environmental rules we have implemented over the past year."

Key improvements that are being implemented include:

• The publication of a "completeness" checklist for offshore oil and gas operators. This high-level checklist, which aligns with BOEMRE's review process, includes the main components that need to be submitted by operators to make a permit application complete. This checklist does not ensure approval of an application, but will clarify for operators what is needed in their submission. The development of the checklist comes after multiple meetings with operators who have requested such additional guidance.
• To improve the efficiency of the review process and reduce the number of permits returned to operators because of incomplete information, BOEMRE personnel will conduct completeness checks before beginning an in-depth, substantive review of the application. Bureau personnel will focus on identifying significant omissions during the initial review so as to quickly identify applications that are not ready for full review. Deficiencies and omissions will be communicated to the operator for correction at the same time. This does not guarantee that incomplete information will not be found later in the review, but the completeness check is designed to capture the major gaps in submission criteria early in the review process.
• In an effort to ensure efficiency, permits found to be complete will have a higher priority in the review process. The bureau has established priorities for reviewing permit applications as follows: 

o Permits for ongoing operations, such as sidetracks or deeper exploration of an existing well;

o Applications deemed complete; and

o If staff time allows, applications that are not deemed complete, such as those missing a required containment plan or the necessary professional engineer certifications, may begin to be processed. This category also includes permit applications without an approved exploration or development plan.

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CGGVeritas Granted Seismic Permit in GOM

- CGGVeritas Granted Seismic Permit in GOM

Monday, May 23, 2011
CGGVeritas

CGGVeritas has been granted a seismic permit in the Gulf of Mexico.

Based on the award of this permit, CGGVeritas is currently in discussions with various E&P companies operating in the Gulf of Mexico to finalize the design of a new multi-client program. The program will utilize BroadSeis, our breakthrough broadband marine solution, in a wide-azimuth configuration.

Subject to our standard prefunding considerations, the Gulf of Mexico program is targeted to commence in the fourth quarter of 2011.

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Petroceltic Contracts 2nd Drilling Rig for Algerian Permit

- Petroceltic Contracts 2nd Drilling Rig for Algerian Permit

Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Petroceltic International Inc.

Petroceltic announced the signing of a fully termed contract with KCA Deutag for a second drilling rig on the enlarged appraisal campaign on the Isarene Permit, as outlined in the recent funding announcement. KCA Deutag's Nomad class drilling rig T-211 will work alongside the existing Dalma Rig LR-12 on the Ain Tsila Field appraisal program.

Petroceltic has also signed two contracts for studies in support of the Final Discovery Report. These are with G3Baxi Partnership Limited for field development conceptual studies and with Ove Arup and Partners for a geotechnical study. These studies will assist with initial concept selection and the location of the facilities, infrastructure and pipelines for the Final Discovery Report.

The T-211 rig contract period is for up to three wells and, in conjunction with the existing rig, will allow the enlarged program of a minimum of six appraisal wells to be completed before the end of 2011, allowing sufficient time for the submittal of the Final Discovery Report on the Isarene Permit to the Algerian authorities. The T-211 rig recently completed a program in Algeria for another operator in the Illizi basin and is expected to commence mobilizing to the first well location in June 2011, with drilling operations likely to commence in July 2011.

Brian O'Cathain, Chief Executive of Petroceltic commented, "The contract for the second rig will see a significant increase in the pace of appraisal activity on the Ain Tsila discovery following the recent successful fund raising and the farm out to ENEL. The award of contracts for the conceptual and geotechnical studies is of importance as they mark the start of the move from the exploration and appraisal phases of the production sharing contract into the pre-development phase."

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ADX: Tunisian Govt Agrees to Extend Chorbane Permit

ADX: Tunisian Govt Agrees to Extend Chorbane Permit

Wednesday, May 11, 2011
ADX Energy Limited

ADX Energy Limited on Wednesday announced that the Tunisian authorities (Comite Consultatif des Hydrocarbures) have agreed to the extension of the current exploration period for the Chorbane permit by one year to the 12th of July 2012.

The Chorbane exploration permit contains the Sidi Dhaher prospect. All site preparations to drill the Sidi Dhaher exploration well have been completed and a ready to drill status has been achieved.

The Tunisian authorities (Ministry of Industry and Technology) have informed the Company during recent meetings in Tunis that the drilling of the Sidi Dhaher well is a priority and the required level of government authority supervision to ensure safe mobilization and efficient drilling operations will be provided. ADX anticipates that the appropriate measures for road clearance, traffic control and road safety will be available shortly.

ADX will continue to prepare for the drilling of the Sidi Dhaher well and provide a further update when a scheduled mobilization date is determined.

The Sidi Dhaher prospect is located in the 2,428km2 large Chorbane Exploration Permit onshore central Tunisia near the port city of Sfax. It is surrounded by several producing oil fields and extensive oil and gas infrastructure.

Participant interests in the Sidi Dhaher -1 well will be as follows;

• ADX Energy Ltd 40% Operator
• Gulfsands Petroleum Plc 40%*
• XState Resources Ltd 10%*
• Verus Investments Limited 10%*

(*The respective participant interests in the Sidi Dhaher well and the Chorbane Permit are based on the completion of all farmin obligations.)

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Icon Begins Drilling at Lydia Well

Icon Begins Drilling at Lydia Well

Monday, April 18, 2011
Icon Energy Ltd.

Icon commenced drilling the Lydia-10 coal seam gas well at 4:30am on Sunday, April 17, 2011 in the ATP626P Lydia Block (Permit), in which Stanwell Corporation (Stanwell) has farmed into.

Lydia-10 is being drilled using the Atlas Drilling Rig #2.

The Well forms part of Stanwell's investment (through Goondi Energy Pty Ltd) in ATP626P, located in the Surat Basin, to earn a 50% interest in the four graticular blocks which make up what is known as the Lydia Block.

As at 11:00am (AEST) on Monday, April 18, 2011, the Well had set and cemented with 9⁵/₈" casing at a depth of 105.75m. It is expected that the Well will be drilling ahead by approximately 2:00pm Monday, April 18, 2011). The Well is targeting the Walloon Coal Measures with the well programmed to reach a target depth of 920m.

Icon Energy Managing Director Ray James said that, "Following the drilling of Lydia-10 the Rig will move 5.4 kilometres north north-east in the Permit to drill the Lydia-11 well and then 3.2 kilometers north north-west to drill Lydia-12."

Circle Oil Hits Gas Pay in Morocco

Circle Oil Hits Gas Pay in Morocco

Friday, April 15, 2011
Circle Oil plc

Circle Oil announced that the KSR-11 exploration well has been drilled, logged and successfully tested in the Sebou Permit, Rharb Basin, Morocco.

The Company confirms a gas discovery in the Main Intra Hoot target and secondary targets available for future testing in the Mid and Base Guebbas sands. The well tested gas at a sustained rate of 4.0 mmscf/d on a 16/64" choke from the Intra Hoot. The perforated Intra Hoot zone of 17.9 meters at 1,761.2-1,779.1 meters MD has a calculated net gas pay of 11.6 meters.

The Base Guebbas zone of 37.7 meters at 1,636.0-1,673.7 meters MD has a calculated net gas pay of 5.5 meters. The Mid Guebbas zone of 22.8 meters at 1,464.1-1,486.9 meters MD has a calculated net gas pay of 4.1 meters. The Guebbas Zones will be tested at a later date following production and depletion of the Intra Hoot producing zone.

The well is being completed as a potential producer.

A full technical evaluation of all the results of the well is underway. This will allow for future planning as a precursor to further assessment of the resource, including conducting an extended well test to give a more complete estimation of the reserves.

The drilling rig is now being demobilized to end the 2010-2011 drilling campaign. Work is underway for consolidation of the results of this campaign together with planning for the next drilling campaign. The preparations for Circle's third Moroccan drilling campaign include the acquisition of a new 3D seismic survey over areas of Circle's permits not previously covered by 3D seismic.

In parallel, recent engineering testing of underground crossings of public transport infrastructure have been successfully completed as part of the construction preparation for the new 8-inch pipeline. Work on the pipeline is progressing in line with management's expectations.

The Sebou permit lies to the north-east of Rabat in the Rharb Basin in Morocco. The Rharb Basin is a foredeep basin located in the external zone of the Rif Folded belt. The concession agreement, in which Circle has a 75% share and ONHYM, the Moroccan State oil company, has a 25% share, includes the right of conversion to a production license of 25 years, plus extensions in the event of commercial discoveries.

Prof. Chris Green, CEO, said, "I am very pleased to be able to report that we have yet again continued our drilling success in Morocco's Rharb Basin. The KSR-11 well has been completed and, when required, will be available for future production. We tested this well at a small restricted choke size and it still achieved a good flow rate with very quick pressure build up. The second drilling campaign has been very successful and we have increased our ability to both supply gas and incrementally increase our resources in line with the business plan for the area. Everyone has worked hard to achieve this result and it is definitely appropriate to thank staff and our service companies for their efforts and also to thank ONHYM for their continuing support to our endeavors."