Sonoro acquires land, permit for Budong Budong appraisal well program

By Romel S. Gurky

TSX-listed Sonoro Energy Ltd. announced Tuesday that it has purchased land, secured environmental permit, and identified a drilling contractor for its Budong Budong appraisal well program in Indonesia?s West Sulawesi Province.

Sonoro said in a statement the appraisal well program, offsetting the original LG-1 well drilled in 2011, will target the Lariang pliocene ?415?, ?450? and ?490? sands, with drilling expected to begin in early August.

The company said a letter of intent (LOI) has been signed with PT Pontil, an Indonesian subsidiary of TSX-listed Major Drilling Group International (MDI), with over 700 drilling rigs worldwide. The drilling rig is a specialized, fit-for-purpose hydraulic rig ideal for the depth of this LG-1 updip well, which Sonoro believes is an efficient and cost-effective tactic toward possible commercial development of such shallow hydrocarbon resources. ?A contract is being finalized, and with this LOI in hand, PT Pontil is now proceeding in its planning and permitting of the specified rig, currently located across the Makassar Strait in Balikpapan,? the statement said.

Sonoro said it has received approval from SKK Migas, Indonesia?s upstream oil and gas regulator, for its environmental plan submitted to drill up to seven wells in the Budong Budong PSC, offsetting the original LG-1 well.

Sonoro also said it has purchased the land for the first appraisal well location, and may now proceed with preparations to construct the land site to accept a drilling rig and its associated services.

Elsewhere, the company said it has further identified and received bids for a majority of the other drilling services involved in the Budong Budong PSC appraisal well program, and hopes to sign these contracts in the next several weeks. With this progress, the company expects to spud the LG-1 updip well around August 1, 2017, assuming the drilling rig passes its function tests and SKK Migas approvals to commence drilling.

?We are very pleased with the rapid progress our team has made in a short amount of time to bring this appraisal well program together, given the number of contractors and local and national government authorities that we?ve been working with,? said Sonoro?s Chief Executive Officer and Director Richard Wadsworth. ?Furthermore, a spud date in early August will be a significant achievement for this basin after many years of inactivity, despite the proven hydrocarbons produced here over a century ago.?

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak