- Valeura Energy (TSX:VLE) is announcing three oil discoveries offshore the Gulf of Thailand that hold the potential to increase reserves and resources and create further shareholder value
- Management believes the Niramai and Wassana North discoveries, when combined with existing Niramai volumes, offer enough recoverable oil to justify a new development project
- Valeura Energy is exploring, developing and producing petroleum and natural gas in Thailand and Turkey
- The oil stock has added 65.34 per cent year-over-year, and 104.17 per cent over the past five years
Valeura Energy (TSX:VLE) is announcing three oil discoveries offshore the Gulf of Thailand that hold the potential to increase reserves and resources and create further shareholder value.
The Nong Yao D discovery
The company drilled the Nong Yao-13 well (G11/48 concession, 90 per cent working interest) to a measured depth of 5,399 feet, discovering more than 30 feet of new oil pay across multiple intervals.
The intervals are composed of new shallow zones management believes to be recurring across the Nong Yao D area, warranting further analysis of seismic data to pinpoint locations for follow-up exploration and appraisal drilling.
The Niramai and Wassana North discoveries
The company also drilled two wells north of the Wassana oil field (G10/48 concession, 100 per cent interest) with the goal of finding enough oil to substantiate a future development project.
The Niramai-4 well, about 1 kilometre northeast of the successful Niramai-1 oil discovery in 2009, reached a measured depth of 7,312 feet, discovering more than 90 feet of new oil pay across two reservoirs.
Valeura’s crew then sidetracked the well with a well understood high-angle known as Niramai-4 ST1 to test the Wassana North prospect, a fault block immediately north of the Wassana field. This additional well was drilled to a measured depth of 12,388 feet, discovering approximately 40 feet of new oil pay.
The Wassana North discovery’s deepest oil-bearing zone intersected the reservoir significantly downdip, with oil interpreted to be present to the base of the reservoir with no oil-water contact in the well, indicating further oil potential laterally and at depth.
Management believes the wells, when combined with existing Niramai volumes, offer enough recoverable oil to merit a new development project on the G10/48 block, which could extend production beyond its current limit of 2032, as well as contribute to next year’s year-end reserves and resources report.
Near-term drilling plans
Valeura’s contracted drilling rig will soon break ground on two infill development wells on the Nong Yao A platform to increase near-term production rates. The company will then finalize commissioning work on the Nong Yao C mobile offshore production unit, followed by development drilling on the Nong Yao C accumulation. The company is targeting initial oil production from Nong Yao C in early Q3 2024.
Management insights
“As we continue to pursue adding value through growth, near-field exploration forms an important part of sizing up the organic potential of our assets,” Sean Guest, Valeura Energy’s president and chief executive officer, said in a statement. “With successful results like these, the opportunity set before us is continuing to expand.”
“Following this exploration drilling campaign, we are returning to both infill drilling and development work, which is intended to increase production rates over the coming months to support cash flow generation, particularly as we see benchmark oil prices rise to new highs for this year,” he added. “We are also planning for further exploration drilling elsewhere in our portfolio later in the year.”
About Valeura Energy
Valeura is exploring, developing and producing petroleum and natural gas in Thailand and Turkey. The company’s growth strategy centres on investing in its producing asset portfolio, as well as evaluating inorganic acquisitions across Southeast Asia.
Valeura Energy stock (TSX:VLE) last traded at C$5.39 per share. The stock has added 65.34 per cent year-over-year, and 104.17 per cent over the past five years.
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