Continental Energy files POD for Bangkudulis oil field

Canadian junior oil firm Continental Energy Corporation reported on Tuesday that it had filed the required Plan of Development (POD) for its Bangkudulis oil field -- located in East Kalimantan -- with Indonesian government energy authorities.

The POD concluded that Phase-I Development plan should reasonably lead to recovery of up to 5,487,720 barrels of crude oil, representing an effective initial recovery of 18.59% of calculated oil in place over an effective Bangkudulis Field producing life of 20 years from date of first production.

Continental said Phase-I development would include the drilling of three new production wells and the treatment and/or workover of the Bangkudulis-A1 discovery well to restore it to production. Sufficient surface production facilities would be installed in the field to handle, treat, store, transport and deliver 3,000 barrels of produced fluids per day. Target oil production peak rate expected from Phase-I Development is 1,500 BOPD. Oil storage would consist of a leased or purchased crude oil tanker barge capable of acting as oil production storage (about 12,000 to 15,000 barrels). This barge will have the capability to on-load one or more 8,000-barrel shuttle tanker barges, delivering crude oil on a routine schedule to PERTAMINA at its nearby Bunyu Island oil terminal.

Phase-I Development should be completed within 9 months from start at a cost of approximately US$5,000,000 in addition to the $ 6,500,000 already invested by GATB to date. An additional development investment of approximately $7,000,000 will be required to fully implement Phase-I development but is expected to be derived largely from production revenues.

Phase-II Development should commence only after Phase-I is completed, and should proceed at a pace consistent with its financing from available field production revenues. Phase-II development should consist of drilling as many as 18 to 24 additional wells in a step-out fashion with the objective of defining Bangkudulis Field limits to the west, southwest and south of the A1 well. The results of each well should justify drilling of the next well. Our mapping indicates there are numerous fault blocks making up the Bangkudulis. Phase-II development should be completed within 24 to 36 months.

Phase-III Development should commence when Phase-II is completed, and should be conducted in accordance with a completely revised POD based on actual results of Phase-I and Phase-II development.

Continental has 100 percent working interest in Bangkudulis TAC through its subsidiary GAT Bangkudulis Petroleum Company Ltd. (GATB). A local company is entitled to 30% of GATB's net after tax profits. (alex)