Isramco Ltd. (Nasdaq: ISRL; TASE: ISRA.L) and ATP Oil & Gas Corporation (Nasdaq: ATPG) have officially declared the Shimshon well a natural gas discovery. The net thickness of the Miocene-Oligocene target strata is 19 meters.
The Shimshon well, located 91 kilometers northwest of Ashdod, was drilled in 1,103-meter deep water and reached a depth of 4,429 meters, including the water. Well operator ATP carried out various tests and data collection, including electrical logs, examination of rock samples, chemical analysis of the natural gas, and pressure in the reservoir, which led to the conclusion of natural gas at the well.
ATP says that the quantity of gas discovered justifies an examination of resources for the estimation of the reservoir and commercial production. Under Israel Securities Authority rules, Isramco has 60 days to report on the estimated resources needed from the conclusion of the production tests.
Earlier this week, Isramco announced the results of the production tests at the Shimshon well, which took 35 days. The well produced 39.08 million cubic feet of gas and 9.3 million barrels of condensate, at an average rate of 22.7 million cubic feet of gas a day.
The Shimshon license has a best estimate of 2.3 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of natural gas with a 20% geological probability of success. The probability of success is lower than for the Tamar Sands formation, and the quantity of gas is just over a quarter of the 9 TCF Tamar discovery.
Isramco and its affiliates own 60% of Shimshon, ATP owns 40%, and . Isramco has agreed to sell 10% of the license rights to Modiin Energy LP (TASE:MDIN.L), controlled by Nochi Dankner's IDB Holding Corp. Ltd. (TASE:IDBH) and Tzahi Sultan, although the terms of the sale have not yet been met.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on August 1, 2012
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