Faroe Petroleum commences the drilling of the Topaz well 49/2a-X (in Block 49/2a in the UK Southern Gas Basin), by the Noble Al White rig.

This undeveloped gas field (discovered in 1987) straddles Blocks 49/1a and 49/2a and is located 14 kilometres south east of the producing Schooner field in which Faroe also holds a 4.83% interest. The Company acquired its 7.5% interest in Topaz from E.ON Ruhrgas in November 2007 as part of a cross border package acquisition which included an interest in the Schooner field.

Field partners are RWE Dea UK SNS Limited (57.5% and acting as operator) and GDF Britain Limited (35%) and the planned development will be a single well tieback to Schooner and the CMS system. The gross reserves are estimated to be 32bcf, with net reserves attributable to Faroe estimated to be 2.4bcf. Production is expected to commence in early 2009 and continue until 2017.

Graham Stewart, Chief Executive of Faroe commented, “We are pleased to be able to report the commencement of drilling on the Topaz gas field. We acquired this asset as part of a cross-border swap transaction with E.ON Ruhrgas in November last year, since when the outlook for gas prices has continued to improve. Production from Topaz will enhance our gas production portfolio and therefore strengthen the business as a whole, creating further value for our shareholders through our balanced portfolio of production, appraisal and exploration assets.”

Tags: Faroe Petroleum