Afren announces testing results from Okoro East

Thursday, Mar 08, 2012

London, 7 March 2012 – Afren plc ("Afren" or the “Company”) announces that testing has been completed at the Okoro East oil discovery, offshore south east Nigeria, and that results confirm a high quality 38° to 40 API oil, in excellent reservoir sands. Based on the test data the Company expects future horizontal production wells at Okoro East will be capable of yielding between 4,500 to 7,000 bopd per well. The Company will drill two production wells using existing facilities in H2 2012 and up to 8 production wells, under a full field development scenario.

Following the Okoro East exploration well discovery announced on 17th January 2012, three drill stem tests (DSTs) have been undertaken and completed. The purpose of the tests was to obtain fluid samples and pressure data in order to establish reservoir connectivity, heterogeneity and quantify permeability and porosity. The tests have confirmed a high quality 38° to 40° API oil, multi Darcy permeabilities and average porosity of between 30% to 35%, in the subject reservoirs. The pressure data also obtained has helped with the Company’s structural understanding of the field and supports the pre drill volumetric estimates (Pmean STOIIP of 157 mmbbls).

Based on the test data, the Company expects future horizontal production wells at Okoro East will be capable of yielding rates of between 4,500 bopd to 7,000 bopd per well. The Company intends to drill up to two production wells in H2 2012 using the free well head slots on the existing Okoro platform, which will be tied back to the Armada Perkasa Floating Production, Storage and Offloading vessel. This production information will allow Amni and Afren to finalise development options, with up to 8 possible production wells under a full field development.

Osman Shahenshah, Chief Executive of Afren, commented:

“Together with our partner Amni, we have recorded an excellent set of test results at the Okoro East oil discovery. We will now work towards realising near-term production from Okoro East by utilising available well slots at the nearby Okoro main field wellhead platform. The tie back to existing facilities ensures a very high return on the additional wells. We are simultaneously working up stand-alone development options, with up to 8 producing wells, that will enable us to fully realise the field’s significant potential. The well has also opened up follow on prospectivity on the block that we will continue to evaluate. With the JS-2 exploration well in the Kurdistan region of Iraq and the ENI operated Nunya-1x (Cuda-2) exploration well offshore Ghana currently drilling, the Okoro East discovery is an excellent start to Afren’s 2012 exploration campaign.”

Background
The Company announced on 17 January 2012 that the Okoro East exploration well, offshore south east Nigeria, had made a new oil discovery having encountered 549 ft true vertical thickness (TVT) of net oil pay and 41 ft of net gas pay in excellent quality reservoir sands.
The well result represents a successful start to Afren’s 2012 exploration campaign that will see the Company participate in multiple wells across each of its core areas.

The Okoro East exploration well was spudded on 18 December 2011 and reached a total measured depth of 8,751 ft measured depth (8,016 ft true vertical depth), with the Transocean Adriatic lX jack-up drilling rig. The well successfully encountered oil in Tertiary reservoir sands equivalent to those that have been developed and are in production at the Okoro main field, in addition to the deeper previously unexplored reservoirs. The discovery of significant pay in the previously unexplored deeper zones opens up further prospectivity at similar levels on the main Okoro field and elsewhere on the block.

The objective of Afren and its partner Amni International Petroleum Development Company Ltd. (“Amni”) was to explore a separate previously un-drilled structure located approximately 2 km east of the Okoro main field. Okoro East is in a similar structural setting with a fault sealed 3-way dip closure in Tertiary reservoir sands at equivalent intervals to the main Okoro Field. In addition, the Okoro East exploration well was targeting a deeper horst block structure, a play concept that had not been previously explored on the block. The prospect was mapped on good quality 3D seismic data.

Source: Afren