Global Petroleum agrees work commitment on Namibian licence

The AIM-traded firm had announced an extension to the first renewal exploration period of 12 months to 3 December in late November, as well as entry into the second renewal period from 3 December, for a period of two years.

It explained that the licence covered the 1910B and 2010A blocks in the Walvis Basin, offshore Namibia.

Global said it had now agreed a work commitment for the second renewal period with the Namibian Ministry of Mines and Energy.

It said the firm additional work programme consisted of various studies, including mapping of source rock, mapping of contourites deposits, fault studies and amplitude versus offset (AVO) analyses and extended elastic impedance (EEI) studies on seismic data.

The financial commitment to undertake the firm additional work programme was $0.35m.

In addition, and carried over from the first renewal period extension, was the acquisition of 600 square kilometres of 3D seismic data, contingent on Global concluding a farmout, as well as the drilling of one exploration well.

The Ministry had also waived the requirement to surrender a further 25% of the original licence area, which is normally required at the end of the first renewal period - with 50% having already been surrendered in accordance with the petroleum agreement at the end of the initial exploration period.

Global said “significant” prospective resources had been calculated on three prospects and two leads in the licence area, which were detailed in the Competent Person's Report released in January.

The Albian carbonates were the main reservoir for the three prospects, with the primary prospect - Gemsbok - also having prospective resources in two deeper layers.

One of the two leads, Choje, had Upper Cretaceous deep water sandstones as its reservoir.

Both the Albian carbonate and Upper Cretaceous sandstone plays were currently being worked up further, both in PEL0029 and in Global's adjacent licence, PEL0094.

The board said further details would be released when work was complete.

“We are pleased to have been able to reach agreement with the Ministry in relation to the work programme going forward on PEL0029,” said Global Petroleum chief executive officer Peter Hill.

“We look forward to progressing our work both on PEL0029 and the adjacent PEL0094, and to finding the right partner to fund the larger commitments on this exciting acreage, where we hold 85% interests.”