TomCo gets approval to begin field test at Holliday Block

Oil shale exploration and development company TomCo Energy updated the market on its Holliday Block and the forthcoming field test programme on the block of TurboShale’s RF technology on Friday, reporting that the Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining (DOGM) has approved its notice of intention to conduct exploration on the Holliday Block.

The AIM-traded firm said that approval, which followed the company's recent successful trip to Utah to finalise the field test, was required to undertake the test.

It recently commissioned Manzanita Botanical Consulting to conduct a Graham's Beardtongue survey on the approximately one-acre field test area.

The survey conducted under the US Fish and Wildlife Service rare plant monitoring protocols was required to ascertain if any of those protected plants were growing in the area.

During the application process for the large mining operations, Penstemon habitats were identified within the Holliday Block, so a plan to relocate any found within a work area was agreed as part of the large mining operations approval.

No Penstemon plants were found in the area, the company reported, and so no further action was required ahead of the field test.

The company said it had also received a letter of support from the Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration - the lessor of TomCo’s mineral leases.

The letter stated that SITLA was “appreciative of TomCo's diligence in adhering to environmental stipulations, particularly the botanical requirements and the archaeological survey requirements”.

SITLA reportedly said it was supportive of the proposed technology being tested on the lands. “Should the technology prove effective, SITLA stands to receive production royalties as per the terms and conditions of the mineral lease,” the administration wrote.

“The beneficiaries of these royalties are the public school children of the State of Utah."

TomCo said it had now received the regulatory permissions required to carry out the field test.

“I would like to thank the State of Utah's Division of Oil, Gas & Mining and the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration for their continuing support of the company ahead of the upcoming field test,” said chairman Andrew Jones.