| JULY 2003 - RELEASES |
| QUARTERLY REPORT FOR QUARTER ENDING 30 JUNE 2003 (31-07-03) |
To view the Quarterly Report for quarter ending 30 June 2003, click here |
| ACTIVITY UPDATE (25-07-2003) |
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• Development drilling activity at Saltfleetby Gas Field continues.
Saltfleetby-7, which commenced drilling on 11 July, has set 13-3/8 inch casing at 629 metres and current operation, at midnight local time on 24 July 2003 was preparing to drill ahead in 12-1/4 inch hole. The well’s objectives were stated in ROC’s 16 July 2003 release to the ASX. The next significant operational event will be the appraisal of the potential Brinsley Abdy oil reservoir, which is expected to be reached by mid August 2003. ROC does not intend to issue any further ASX release on the well until after completion of the Brinsley Abdy appraisal activities..
John
Doran |
| ROC AWARDED 100% OF A NEW ONSHORE UK EXPLORATION LICENCE BASED ON A NOVEL EXPLORATION CONCEPT (22-07-2003) |
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KEY POINT
• The UK Government has awarded, to a wholly owned subsidiary of ROC, a 100% interest in and operatorship of, a new 828 sq km onshore exploration licence, PEDL127, in Norfolk, eastern England. The licence work programme will test a novel exploration concept which suggests that gas may be entrapped updip from the 4 trillion cubic foot (“TCF”) Hewett Gas Field, which is located in the southern North Sea, approximately 25 km from the eastern boundary of the new exploration licence.
The licence work programme, to be completed within an initial 3-year period, comprises the purchase of existing seismic and gravity data and the acquisition of at least 20 km of new 2D seismic data, with a total estimated cost of approximately £220,000 / A$550,000. The licence covers approximately 828 sq km of the northeastern part of East Anglia, north of the city of Norwich, adjacent to the North Sea coastline (Attachment 1). Regional structural dip is down from the licence area towards the 4 TCF Hewett Gas Field, located some 25 km offshore to the northeast. Relatively shallow gas, structurally or stratigraphically trapped updip from the Hewitt Field, is the exploration concept upon which ROC’s application for the new licence was based.
“The successful application for this long-shot, low cost and somewhat novel exploration opportunity with big upside potential, is the direct result of some innovative exploration thinking by ROC’s UK staff. The application is consistent with the “Organic Growth” component of ROC's dual strategy whereby the Company is consolidating its interests in existing licences and generally confining new exploration ventures to countries where the Company already has a presence. The Company expects to reduce its equity in this permit at an appropriate time in the future, consistent with its view that its optimum level of interest in any new exploration venture which it operates is in the 30-60% range.”
John
Doran Return to ASX Releases main page
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| DRILLING UNDERWAY AT SALTFLEETBY GAS FIELD, ONSHORE UNITED KINGDOM (16-07-2003) |
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KEY POINT
A seventh well has commenced drilling at the Saltfleetby Gas Field with development targets in the main Westphalian gas pool and the Namurian gas pool below it. The well will also appraise a shallower oil play. If successful, the well will boost field production going into the UK winter.
Saltfleetby Gas Field, Onshore UK (ROC: 100%) Saltfleetby
7, an appraisal/development well in the Saltfleetby Gas Field, commenced
drilling on 11 July 2003. The surface conductor had been pre-drilled earlier
in the month and set at 66.5 metres, from which depth the well has now
drilled out. The well
has been designed also to appraise a potential oil reservoir in the Brinsley
Abdy sands, some 220 metres above the main gas zone. This oil reservoir
was encountered at Saltfleetby 3 but until now, it has proved to be too
difficult to define its areal location and quality and this had precluded
any earlier appraisal attempt. With the application of modern techniques,
ROC believes it may now be possible to seismically define the nature and
extent of the reservoir. The well path and ROC's unwillingness to compromise
the primary objectives of the well, mean that the oil zone is not expected
to be of outstanding quality at the Saltfleetby 7 location, but proof
of the seismic interpretation would lead to further targeting of this
oil accumulation.
John
Doran Return to ASX Releases main page
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| ROC FINALISES ITS CONSOLIDATION OF A 60% INTEREST IN THE CABINDA SOUTH BLOCK, ONSHORE ANGOLA (15-07-2003) |
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KEY POINTS
• In its March 2003 quarterly report, ROC announced that, subject to finalising a formal agreement, it had agreed to acquire from Lacula Oil Company Limited (“Lacula”) that company’s 15% working interest in the South Cabinda Block (“the Block”), onshore Angola. That agreement has now been finalised. The consideration for the acquisition has been reduced since the previous announcement and now consists of a U$125,000 cash payment upon receipt of relevant Government approvals and a further payment of US$100,000 when the first development plan for the Block is approved. The transaction, which is subject to the approval of the relevant Government Authorities in Angola, will consolidate ROC's interest in the Block at 60%. • In a separate transaction, ROC has also acquired an option to purchase an overriding royalty, which attaches to the 15% working interest being acquired from Lacula. In consideration for the grant of the option, ROC will pay the private parties in North America, who own the royalty, US$100,000 within 14 days of the Production Sharing Agreement being triggered. In the event that ROC decides to exercise its option to effectively extinguish the overriding royalty, it may do so through the payment of a further US$250,000 within six months of commercial production commencing in the Block.
1. THE TRANSACTIONS In consideration for the acquisition of Lacula's 15% interest in the Block, ROC will pay Lacula a cash consideration of US$125,000 within 14 days from the receipt of relevant Government approvals to the transaction. In addition, ROC has undertaken to provide Lacula with an additional cash payment of US$100,000 when the first development plan for the Block is approved. The Lacula-ROC transaction is subject to relevant Government approvals. In a separate transaction, ROC has also acquired an option to acquire a 3% overriding royalty, presently held by private interests in North America, which is attached to the 15% working interest being acquired from Lacula. This option has been granted for a consideration of US$100,000 payable upon triggering of the Production Sharing Agreement over the Block ("PSA") and will be exercisable within six months of commercial production commencing in the Block through the payment of a further US$250,000.
2. BACKGROUND The Block covers 1,080 sq km/267,000 acres approximately 450 km north of Luanda, the national capital of Angola (Attachment 1). During the last 40 years, the offshore area immediately to the west and to the north of the Block has been the scene of spectacularly successful exploration which has resulted in the discovery of more than 4 billion barrels of oil. As a consequence of these exploration results, offshore Cabinda became Angola's main oil producing area prior to the recent development of the deepwater oil fields further offshore. Several of the large, near shore, oil fields are associated with structural trends that are believed to run southeastwards towards the Block. Geologically, the Block is part of the Lower Congo Basin, one of West Africa's most prolific oil producing provinces. However, for a variety of historical and non-technical reasons, the Block has not been subject to any exploration since 1972 when it was relinquished by Gulf Oil Company. ROC had previously acquired a 45% interest in and operatorship of the Block from Total (see ROC's ASX Release dated 18 October 2001). Therefore, the acquisition of this additional 15% interest represents a consolidation of ROC's interest to 60%. ROC's co-venturers in the Block are Force Petroleum ("Force") (20%), a privately owned company, and Sonangol (20%), the National Oil Company of the Republic of Angola, which is carried through the exploration stage by the non-government parties. The PSA has already been agreed between the non-government and Government parties. It will become effective when ROC, Force and the relevant Government Authorities agree that it is appropriate to resume on-the-ground exploration activities in the Block. ROC is hopeful, but cannot guarantee, that this will happen within the next 12-18 months. Prior to the PSA being triggered, ROC will continue to review all available technical data and undertake geological studies in preparation for the re-commencement of exploration operations.
3. CEO COMMENTS Commenting on the transactions referred to above, ROC's Chief Executive Officer, Dr John Doran, stated that: "The
transactions represent a neat consolidation of ROC's interests in an area
which the Company views as being quite unique. ROC first tried to acquire
the 15% interest, which it has now acquired from Lacula, in early 1998.
In this sense, the transaction highlights the fact that although ROC likes
to think of itself as being quick, nimble and pro-active, when the occasion
demands, it can also be quite patient and dogged. Now that the working
interests in the exploration stage of the Joint Venture are held by just
two companies, ROC and its excellent co-venturer Force, ROC looks forward
to triggering the PSA at an appropriate time in the future. When that
happens, ROC will apply modern seismic and drilling technology to an area
which has not been subject to any exploration work for more than 30 years
despite its obvious regional prospectivity".
Robert
Gerrard Return to ASX Releases main page
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| BLOCK 22/12, BEIBU GULF, OFFSHORE CHINA ("THE BLOCK") (09-07-2003) |
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KEY POINT The 2003 appraisal and exploration drilling programme for the Block has been approved. The programme consists of two firm and two contingent wells. ROC, as operator of the Joint Venture for the Block, is pleased to advise that the Joint Venture has approved a 2003 drilling programme of two firm wells and two contingent exploration/appraisal wells. The firm wells consists of one appraisal well of the 12-8 discovery and one exploration well to be drilled on the 12-7 prospect (Attachment 1). Subject to tendering for, and signing a drilling contract for this drilling programme, it is expected to be carried out during the last quarter of 2003. The participants in the Joint Venture for the Block, and their respective interests are: Roc Oil (China)
Company (Operator) 40% For the record, ROC refers to the ASX release dated 8 July 2003 by Horizon Oil NL ("Horizon"), which includes a report prepared by Resource Investment Strategy Consultants ("RISC"). A part of that report contained an evaluation by RISC of the Block. ROC was not involved in the preparation of RISC's report and, except as specified below, makes no comment on the valuation methodologies and results contained in that report. With the 2003 drilling programme containing a firm appraisal well and a firm exploration well, ROC considers the discoveries in the Block to be at a very early appraisal stage. Whilst preliminary concept development work is in progress, a development decision on the discoveries in the Block will be dependent on the outcome of the 2003 drilling programme and is not likely to be made until 2004. Robert
Gerrard Return to ASX Releases main page
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| ROC CONSOLIDATES INTEREST IN CLIFF HEAD OIL FIELD (04-07-03) |
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KEY POINT ROC's acquisition of the 7.5% Interest in WA-286-P held by ARC Energy NL ("ARC"), previously announced on 1 May 2003, was completed today.
On 1 May 2003, ROC announced to the market that it had agreed to acquire ARC's 7.5% interest in WA 286 P. That exploration permit contains the Cliff Head Oil Field in the northern part of the offshore Perth Basin. The consideration to be paid by ROC for that acquisition was an initial payment of $9 million cash and additional payments of up to a maximum of $3.75 million, subject to certain reserve levels being achieved. Full details of the transaction are set out in ROC's release of 1 May 2003. The agreement was subject to finalisation of formal documentation and receipt of relevant governmental approvals. As both of these matters have now been satisfied, completion of the acquisition took place today. Following
completion, ROC now has a 37.5% interest in, and is Operator of, WA-286-P.
Robert
Gerrard Return to ASX Releases main page
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| TAKEOVER SPECULATION (04-07-03) |
Normally ROC would not comment on market or media rumours. There has, however, been a speculative report in the media this morning that ROC may be a potential takeover target. Consequently, ROC wishes to make the following comments to ensure there is no false market in its shares. • ROC is not in any takeover discussions with any company and it does not expect to have any such discussions in the immediate future. • As a normal part of business, ROC receives expressions of interest in assets that ROC owns which could evolve into broader corporate discussions. There are, however, no such discussions presently taking place. • Contrary to the media report, ROC's CEO, Dr John Doran, is not overseas on a business trip. He is, in fact, on a three week vacation in Switzerland - the first such holiday he has taken in more than two decades. • ROC points out that the recent increase in its share price has not taken it back to the level it was at in late January 2003, when it announced to the market that the Cliff Head-3 sidetracked core hole well, CH-3-ch1, was production tested at a rate of 3,000 barrels of oil per day. • A cursory review of the junior oil and gas sector suggests that there may be a broad improvement in sector sentiment which has impacted on a number of companies, including ROC.
Robert Gerrard
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