Europa Oil & Gas (Holdings) plc /
Index: AIM / Epic: EOG / Sector: Oil & Gas
18 January 2018
Europa Oil &
Gas (Holdings) plc (‘Europa’ or ‘the Company’)
Update on Wressle,
North Lincolnshire
Europa Oil & Gas (Holdings) plc, the UK and Ireland focussed oil and gas exploration,
development and production company, notes today’s update from Egdon
Resources (‘Egdon’) regarding the forward plan for the Wressle oil
field development on PEDL 180 in the East Midlands, including
preparation and submission of two new planning application to North
Lincolnshire Council seeking its consent for the Wressle oil field
developmentand and to extend the current planning consent
This follows the Planning Inspector’s decision to reject Egdon’s
appeals (‘the Appeals’) against the two planning refusals by North
Lincolnshire County Council’s Planning Committee, as announced on
5 January 2017. Europa has a
30% working interest in Wressle alongside Egdon (operator, 25%),
Celtique Energie Petroleum Ltd (30%), and Union Jack Oil (15%),
(‘the Joint Venture partners’). Egdon`s full RNS is reproduced at
the end of this release.
Update on proposed sale of 10%
interest in Wressle to Upland Resources (UK Onshore) Limited
(‘Upland’)
Following the dismissal of the Appeals by the Planning
Inspector, Upland has informed Europa of its intention to withdraw
from the Sale and Purchase Agreement (‘SPA’) signed between the two
parties on 24 November 2016. Under the terms of the SPA,
Upland was to acquire a 10% interest in PEDLs 180 and 182 from
Europa subject to, inter alia, planning permission and approval of
the Wressle Field Development Plan (‘FDP’). See announcement of
24 November 2016 for further
details.
Upland’s decision has minimal impact on Europa in the short
term, as the Company had been and continues to pay its 30% share of
the costs at Wressle. Europa will repay £160.000 paid by
Upland as deposit. Europa’s share of any future production will now
be 30% compared to 20% had the SPA with Upland been
completed. Based on an anticipated gross flow rate of 500bopd
on production startup, Europa’s net share of production will
therefore be an estimated 150 bopd rather than 100bopd. In
addition, the SPA was agreed in November
2016 when Brent Crude was trading between US$45-US$50
compared to US$69 per barrel at the
time of writing.
The Company maintains a good relationship with Upland, with whom
it is a partner on PEDL299 in the East Midlands which contains the
Hardstoft oil field. As a result, management would have no
hesitation in cooperating with Upland in future new venture
opportunities. As mentioned at the AGM in December 2017, Europa is actively engaged in the
review of new venture opportunities across the E&P spectrum
both within its core areas of interest and also in three new
jurisdictions.
Europa's CEO, Hugh Mackay,
said: “Wressle is a proven oil discovery with proven reserves,
significant upside and capable of flowing at 500 bopd gross on
production startup. It remains an excellent opportunity to
significantly increase our net production. Along with all the
partners, we therefore support Egdon’s plans to submit new
applications that address the issues raised by the Inspector.
We are confident these issues are not insurmountable and that
Wressle will finally be brought online. Following
Upland’s withdrawal from the SPA, our 30% share would see Europa’s
net daily production more than double to around 250 bopd.
“Wressle is just one of many value generating opportunities
within our portfolio. As well as interests in other UK
onshore licences including the Holmwood prospect which lies next
door to the Horse Hill discovery in the Weald Basin, we have an
industry leading position offshore Ireland comprised of seven licences exposed to
six different play types in three basins. Combined these licences
have the potential to host gross mean un-risked prospective and
indicative resources of 4.7 billion barrels oil equivalent and 1.5
tcf gas. We are focused on realising the potential across all
our licences, including Wressle, and I look forward to providing
updates on our progress in the year ahead.”
Egdon`s RNS published today is as
follows:
Egdon Resources plc (AIM:EDR) can advise the forward plan for
the Wressle oil field development following the decision made by
the Planning Inspector issued on 4 January
2018, to reject the appeals by Egdon against the two
planning refusals by North Lincolnshire Council’s Planning
Committee.
Having taken legal and planning advice and having fully
considered the specific reasons for rejection of the appeals as set
out by the Inspector in his Decision Notice, the Company can advise
that it will now:
a) Prepare and
submit a new planning application to North Lincolnshire Council
seeking its consent for the Wressle oil field development. This
application, which will be submitted prior to the expiry of the
current planning consent, will address in detail all matters
highlighted by the Inspector in his Decision Notice to dismiss the
appeals
b) Prepare and
submit a new application to North Lincolnshire Council to extend
the current planning consent (which now expires on the 28 April 2018 following our successful appeal) to
ensure that North Lincolnshire Council has sufficient time for
consideration of the new application and to maintain consent for
the current site.
We remain fully prepared to take these new planning applications
through the appeals process should they be delayed or
refused.
In addition we continue to take legal advice in respect of the
Decision Notice.
Mark Abbott Managing Director of Egdon Resources plc, said:
“Egdon and its joint venture partners remain fully committed to
the Wressle project and the proposed new application will address
the limited reasons for refusal highlighted by the Inspector. I
look forward to updating the market on Wressle in due course.
Elsewhere witin Egdon’s extensive portfolio, the coming period
will see potentially high impact drilling activity at Springs Road,
Biscathorpe, Holmwood and possibly North Kelsey, and the results of
workovers at Fiskerton Airfield. We are also developing plans
for the Keddington, Kirkleatham, Dukes Wood/Kirklington and Waddock
Cross fields which will benefit from the improving oil price.”
The information communicated in this announcement is inside
information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation
596/2014.
* * ENDS * *
For further information please visit www.europaoil.com or
contact:
Hugh Mackay |
Europa |
+ 44 (0) 20 7224 3770 |
Phil Greenhalgh |
Europa |
+ 44 (0) 20 7224 3770 |
Matt Goode |
finnCap Ltd |
+ 44 (0) 20 7220 0500 |
Simon Hicks |
finnCap Ltd |
+ 44 (0) 20 7220 0500 |
Emily Morris |
finnCap Ltd |
+ 44 (0) 20 7220 0500 |
Frank Buhagiar |
St Brides Partners Ltd |
+ 44 (0) 20 7236 1177 |
Susie Geliher |
St Brides Partners Ltd |
+ 44 (0) 20 7236 1177 |
Notes
Europa Oil & Gas (Holdings) plc has a diversified portfolio
of multi-stage hydrocarbon assets that includes production,
exploration and development interests, in countries that are
politically stable, have transparent licensing processes, and offer
attractive terms.
In 2017 Europa produced 113 boepd. Its highly prospective
exploration projects include the Wressle development in the UK and
seven licences offshore Ireland
with the potential to host gross mean un-risked prospective and
indicative resources of 4.7 billion barrels oil equivalent and 1.5
tcf gas across all seven licences.
Qualified Person Review
This release has been reviewed by Hugh
Mackay, Chief Executive of Europa, who is a petroleum
geologist with 30 years' experience in petroleum exploration and a
member of the Petroleum Exploration Society of Great Britain, American Association of
Petroleum Geologists and Fellow of the Geological Society. Mr
Mackay has consented to the inclusion of the technical information
in this release in the form and context in which it appears.