UK oil firm closing in on partners for Irish licences
By Geoff Percival
British exploration company Europa Oil and Gas has said it is confident of attracting further development partners for its highly rated portfolio of assets located in Irish waters.
The London-based company has seven licences off the west coast of Ireland, containing an estimated 5bn barrels of oil and 1.5 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas.
Earlier this year, it sold a 70% stake in one of its Irish assets to Scottish explorer Cairn Energy for €6m.
Earlier this week, Europa hinted at the potential for significant new discoveries near the Corrib gas field by estimating it has 2.5 tcf at its Slyne Basin exploration area, adjacent to Corrib.
Chairman Colin Bousfield told shareholders at Europa’s AGM that management has made headway in attracting investor interest in its Irish licences and is confident of further deal activity.
“With six offshore Ireland licences at various stages of the farm-out process, we are confident further deals will be agreed,” he said.
“The flurry of transactions seen during 2017 — including our own farm-out to Cairn Energy — is testament to offshore Ireland’s emergence as an exploration hotspot,” said Mr Bousfield.
“Thanks to our unique position, Europa is very much at the heart of this exciting new play and we are determined to capitalise on this for the benefit of our shareholders.”
“Technical work continues across our Irish acreage to increase the number of drill-ready prospects to six within the next 12 months.
“Currently we have two, each of which is a potential company-maker.”
Despite its upbeat message to shareholders, Europa’s share price fell by over 2% after the AGM.
