Europa Oil & Gas reports a temporary suspension of production at the West Firsby 7 well in the East Midlands, UK.

The well has been shut in due to a suspected hole in a section of the tubing. A work over programme is being submitted to the Health & Safety Executive for approval and a rig has already been booked to carry out the necessary repairs. There is no evidence of any leakage of oil at the site and the Company anticipates that West Firsby 7 will be back in production early in the New Year.

Prior to the shutdown, the Company's average daily production had been running at approximately 200 barrels of oil per day. As a result of the temporary shutdown of West Firsby 7, daily production is now running at 130 bopd. Assuming the work over programme is completed on schedule, management expect daily production for the six months to 31 January 2012 to average 185-190 bopd.

Europa's CEO, Hugh Mackay commented, "It is always disappointing to have to report an unplanned shut in, however I am confident that the swift action we are taking to resolve the issue will limit the overall impact of the shutdown on our first half's production levels. In the meantime, we are continuing with our strategy of progressing our high quality exploration portfolio through the development cycle and I look forward to reporting significant progress in this regard to the market in the New Year."

Tags: Europa Oil & Gas (Holdings) plc