Trinidad Update
10 September 2012
The Manager
Company Announcements
Australian Securities Exchange Limited
Level 6, 20 Bridge Street
Sydney NSW 2000
By e-lodgement
TRINIDAD UPDATE
Range Resources Limited ("Range" or "the Company") is pleased to announce the
following operational update with respect to a number of its wells on the Morne
Diablo license in Trinidad.
The QUN 130 well has reached its target depth of 1,300 ft. with well logs
indicating a well-developed likely oil pay zone from 1,210-1,290 ft. with a
secondary likely oil pay zones from 1,080-1,140 ft. as well as a shallow
resistive sand at 275-300ft. Completion operations were finalised late last
week and production tests commenced over the weekend.
The well was produced on a 6/32" choke and flowed approximately 170 bopd (circa
7.5 bop hour) before being opened up on a 8/32" choke and flowed at
approximately 330 bopd (circa 14 bop hour) before having to reduce the choke
back to 6/32" due to the high pressures encountered at this depth. The well
maintained the flow at approximately 170 bopd, with production having been
stabilised at circa 150 bopd.
The Company is extremely encouraged by this well which has indicated that there
is a new extended Lower Forest oil zone below the 1,000 ft. level that has been
the focus of development to date, and this may transition into the productive
Upper Cruse sands. In addition, the well showed higher than expected pressure
for these depths resulting in encouraging production rates.
The QUN 132 well has also reached its target depth of 1,000 ft. and well logs
have been acquired. Given the encouraging performance of the QUN 130 well, the
Company has commenced the deepening of QUN 132 to target the deeper Lower
Forest sands that were encountered in the QUN 130 well.
The QUN 134 well was spud over the weekend and is targeting the eastward
extension of the Lower Forest trend.
The QUN 131 well has been perforated and is under test.
Work was also completed on the perforation of the remaining Lower Forest sands
in an older well, QUN 97 which is located on the western end of the newer Lower
Forest wells (closest to the initial Lower Forest wells drilled by Range). This
well was placed into production and achieved initial production of circa 60+
bopd and stabilized at circa 30 bopd.
The Company is also looking at a number of other older wells located in close
proximity to the western end of the newer Lower Forest development wells to
determine the possibility of re-entering and deepening them to test for the
deeper Lower Forest sandstones recently identified.
As previously announced the MD248 has spud and is drilling away with a proposed
target depth of 6,500 ft (expected to take 6-8 weeks). The MD248 is the first
well to utilize the Company's Rig 8, which has the deepest operating capability
in the fleet, and will subsequently move on to test deeper objectives,
including the prolific Herrera Formation.
Range now has 4 drilling rigs in operation on the Morne Diablo license and is
extremely encouraged with its Trinidad projects. The Company is targeting to
bring the remaining 2 rigs into operation within the next 1 to 2 months.
Yours faithfully
Peter Landau
Executive Director
Contacts
Range Resources Limited
Peter Landau
Tel : +61 (8) 9488 5220
Em: plandau@rangeresources.com.au
PPR (Australia) Tavistock Communications (London)
David Tasker Ed Portman
Tel: +61 (8) 9388 0944 Tel: + 44 (0) 207 920 3150
Em: david.tasker@ppr.com.au Em: eportman@tavistock.co.uk
RFC Ambrian Limited (Nominated Advisor) Old Park Lane Capital (Joint Broker)
Stuart Laing Michael Parnes
Tel: +61 (8) 9480 2500 Tel: +44 (0) 207 493 8188
Fox-Davies Capital Limited GMP Securities Europe LLP (Joint Broker)
Daniel Fox-Davies / Richard Hail James Pope / Chris Beltgens
Tel: +44 (0) 203 463 5000 Tel: +44 (0) 207 647 2800
Range Background
Range Resources Limited is a dual listed (ASX:RRS; AIM:RRL) oil & gas
exploration company with oil & gas interests in the frontier state of Puntland,
Somalia, the Republic of Georgia, Texas, USA, Trinidad and Colombia.
* In Trinidad Range recently completed the acquisition of a 100% interest in
holding companies with three onshore production licenses and fully
operational drilling subsidiary. Independently assessed Proved (1P)
reserves in place of 15.4 MMbls with 19.6 MMbls of proved, probable and
possible (3P) reserves and an additional 20 MMbls (mean) of prospective
resources.
* In the Republic of Georgia, Range holds a 40% farm-in interest in onshore
blocks VIa and VIb, covering approx. 7,000sq.km. Range completed a 410km 2D
seismic program with independent consultants RPS Energy identifying 68
potential structures containing an estimated 2 billion barrels of
undiscovered oil-in-place (on a mean 100% basis) with the first
(Mukhiani-1) of two exploration wells having spudded in July in 2011. The
Company is focussing on a revised development strategy that will focus on
low-cost, shallow appraisal drilling of the contingent resources around the
Tkibuli-Shaori ("Tkibuli") coal deposit, which straddles the central
sections of the Company's two blocks.
* In Puntland, Range holds a 20% working interest in two licenses
encompassing the highly prospective Dharoor and Nugaal valleys. The operator
and 60% interest holder, Horn Petroleum Corp. (TSXV:HRN) has completed two
exploration wells and will continue with a further seismic and well program
over the next 12-18 months.
* Range holds a 25% interest in the initial Smith #1 well and a 20% interest
in further wells on the North Chapman Ranch project, Texas. The project
area encompasses approximately 1,680 acres in one of the most prolific oil
and gas producing trends in the State of Texas. Independently assessed 3P
reserves in place (on a 100% basis) of 228 Bcf of natural gas, 18 mmbbls of
oil and 17 mmbbls of natural gas liquids.
* Range holds a 21.75% interest in the East Texas Cotton Valley Prospect in
Red River County, Texas, USA, where the prospect's project area encompasses
approximately 1,570 acres encompassing a recent oil discovery. The prospect
has independently assessed 3P reserves in place (on a 100% basis) of
3.3mmbbls of oil.
* Range is earning a 65% (option to move to 75%) interest in the highly
prospective PUT 6 and PUT 7 licences in Putumayo Basin in Southern
Colombia. The Company will undertake a 350km2 3D seismic program across the
two licences and drill one well per licence, as well as looking to re-enter
a previously suspended well that had a significant historical reserve
estimate.
All of the technical information, including information in relation to reserves
and resources that is contained in this document has been reviewed internally
by the Company's technical consultant, Mr Mark Patterson. Mr Patterson is a
geophysicist who is a suitably qualified person with over 25 years' experience
in assessing hydrocarbon reserves and has reviewed the release and consents to
the inclusion of the technical information.
The reserves estimates for the 3 Trinidad blocks and update reserves estimates
for the North Chapman Ranch Project and East Texas Cotton Valley referred above
have been formulated by Forrest A. Garb & Associates, Inc. (FGA). FGA is an
international petroleum engineering and geologic consulting firm staffed by
experienced engineers and geologists. Collectively FGA staff has more than a
century of world–wide experience. FGA have consented in writing to the
reference to them in this announcement and to the estimates of oil and natural
gas liquids provided. The definitions for oil and gas reserves are in
accordance with SEC Regulation S–X an in accordance with the guidelines of the
Society of Petroleum Engineers ("SPE"). The SPE Reserve definitions can be
found on the SPE website at spe.org.
RPS Group is an International Petroleum Consulting Firm with offices worldwide,
who specialise in the evaluation of resources, and have consented to the
information with regards to the Company's Georgian interests in the form and
context that they appear. These estimates were formulated in accordance with
the guidelines of the Society of Petroleum Engineers ("SPE").
The prospective resource estimates for the two Dharoor Valley prospects are
internal estimates reported by Africa Oil Corp, the operator of the joint
venture, which are based on volumetric and related assessments by Gaffney,
Cline & Associates.
In granting its consent to the public disclosure of this press release with
respect to the Company's Trinidad operations, Petrotrin makes no representation
or warranty as to the adequacy or accuracy of its contents and disclaims any
liability that may arise because of reliance on it.
The Contingent Resource estimate for CBM gas at the Tkibuli project is sourced
from the publically available references to a report by Advanced Resources
International's ("ARI") report in 2009: CMM and CBM development in the
Tkibuli-Shaori Region, Georgia. Advanced Resources International, Inc., 2009.
Prepared for GIG/Saknakhshiri and U.S. Trade and Development Agency.-
.globalmethane.org/documents/toolsres_coal_overview_ch13.pdf. Range's technical
consultants have not yet reviewed the details of ARI'sresource estimate and the
reliability of this estimate and its compliance with the SPE reporting
guidelines or other standard is uncertain. Range and its JV partners will be
seeking to confirm this resource estimate, and seek to define reserves, through
its appraisal program and review of historical data during the next 12 months.
Reserve information on the Putumayo 1 Well published by Ecopetrol 1987.
SPE Definitions for Proved, Probable, Possible Reserves and Prospective
Resources
Proved Reserves are those quantities of petroleum, which by analysis of
geoscience and engineering data, can be estimated with reasonable certainty to
be commercially recoverable, from a given date forward, from known reservoirs
and under defined economic conditions, operating methods, and government
regulations.
Probable Reserves are those additional Reserves which analysis of geoscience
and engineering data indicate are less likely to be recovered than Proved
Reserves but more certain to be recovered than Possible Reserves.
Possible Reserves are those additional reserves which analysis of geoscience
and engineering data indicate are less likely to be recoverable than Probable
Reserves.
1P refers to Proved Reserves, 2P refers to Proved plus Probable Reserves and 3P
refers to Proved plus Probable plus Possible Reserves.
Prospective Resources are those quantities of petroleum estimated, as of a
given date, to be potentially recoverable from undiscovered accumulations by
application of future development projects. Prospective Resources have both an
associated chance of discovery and a chance of development. Prospective
Resources are further subdivided in accordance with the level of certainty
associated with recoverable estimates assuming their discovery and development
and may be sub-classified based on project maturity.
Contingent Resources are those quantities of hydrocarbons which are estimated,
on a given date, to be potentially recoverable from known accumulations, but
which are not currently considered to be commercially recoverable.
Undiscovered Oil-In-Place is that quantity of oil which is estimated, on a
given date, to be contained in accumulations yet to be discovered. The
estimated potentially recoverable portion of such accumulations is classified
as Prospective Resources, as defined above.
London
Suite 1A, Prince's House, 38 Jermyn Street, London SW1 6DN
t: +44 (0)207 025 7040, f: +44 207 287 8028
Australia
Ground Floor, 1 Havelock Street, West Perth WA 6005, Australia
t: +61 8 9488 5220, f: +61 8 9324 2400
e: admin@rangeresources.com.au
w: www.rangeresources.com.au