Aminex (LON:AEX), the upstream oil and gas company, announced today that the Olympic Minerals-1 well (“OM-1) at Shoats Creek in Louisiana has been spud using the Crown Drilling Rig No.2.
Founded in 1991, Aminex produces oil and gas in the USA, with ongoing exploration activity in Tanzania, USA, Egypt and North Korea. Aminex invests directly with equity or as the operating partner in a consortium of several oil and gas companies and owns directly Amossco, an international oilfield service, supply and logistics company. At the OM-1 well, Aminex is the operator and has a 100% working interest in the prospect, whilst Olympic Minerals is the lessor of the minerals rights at the location.
The company expect to drill the well to approximately 2,896 metres, to test for various sands in the Cockfield formation, with an estimated time of completion of 21 days. Aminex owns 100% working interest in the well and is the operator, whilst Olympic Minerals is the lessor of the minerals rights at the location.
The Shoats Creek prospect covers an area of 1.570 acres in Louisiana, close to the Texas border. Going forward, there are reportedly proven, undeveloped reserves in the Frio and Cockfield sands, as well as deep exploration potential in Wilcox sands. The 3D seismic technology has reportedly allowed the company to remap and merge this data with existing well data. The company expect to begin a deep drill program at the Wilcox well in collaboration with a farm-in partner.
Aminext Chairman, Brian Hall, commented:
"We have an active drilling programme planned for 2010 and OM-1 is our second new well start since the beginning of the year. In parallel with OM-1 we are currently drilling Likonde-1 in the Ruvuma Basin of Tanzania where good progress is being made. The Company has owned the rights to Shoats Creek for several years and predecessors have produced very light oil and high quality gas there since the late 1950s. However, understanding of complex multiple prospects has now been transformed with benefit of the new 3D seismic data."
You can read further background on the business here and more commentary on Aminex here.
