Document Actions
TAG Oil's New Interest in Radnor and East Coast Permits
1 May 2006 - TAG Oil to earn third interest in Radnor mining permit in onshore Taranaki by paying for two thirds of new sidetrack well.
Independent Canadian oil and gas exploration company, TAG Oil Ltd, has agreed to acquire a third interest in the Radnor onshore Taranaki petroleum mining permit in return for paying 66.66% of the costs drilling and completing a sidetrack well.
TAG Oil said the Radnor-1A sidetrack in PMP 38157 will be drilled from the Radnor-1 well, which is currently operated by Bridge Petroleum with partner Westech Energy.
The Radnor-1 well, drilled in late 2004, flowed natural gas and condensate at average rates of 6mmscf/d of gas and 350 bbls/d oil before water influx occurred.
TAG Oil said it has evaluated newly acquired 3-D seismic covering the permit, and has defined a crestal drilling location updip from both the Radnor-1 well and the older Stratford-1 well, which also produced gas and condensate before watering out.
Radnor-1A will kick off from the original Radnor-1 wellbore and target the McKee Sands at a depth of approximately 4100m. TAG has initiated the process to secure the Parker Rig 188 to drill Radnor-1A in June or July of 2006. The sidetracking operation is expected to take four weeks to drill.
TAG reported it has also recently earned a 35.5% interest in two exploration permits PEP 38341 and PEP 38342 operated by Texas-based Discovery Geo (Australia) Corporation in the Wairarapa region of the onshore East Coast Basin.
To earn the interests TAG participated in a 67 km 2-D seismic programme covering both permits. The seismic data results will be available in June. Following interpretation of this data, TAG said it will shoot additional seismic across the two permits. Depending on results, a well may then be planned and drilled.
As a result of the above acquisitions as well as amendments to TAG's evolving exploration programme, the company's planned capital expenditures have increased by 21% since last report to shareholders in February 2006.
In other news TAG has completed its two operated 2-D seismic programmes. One covers the Kate prospect in PEP 38260 (TAG interest 70%) in the Canterbury Basin, north of Christchurch. The other seismic acquisition was in the 100% controlled PEP 38758 in the Taranaki Basin. TAG acquired over 60 km of 2-D data over these two permits and has now secured Ensign's Rig 19 to test prospects in both permits later this year.
Source: TAG press release
