RE: RE: Up Coming New ReleaseWinstar Provides Updated Drilling Plans in Southern Tunisia, an Update on Tunisian Operations and Announces the Sale of its Exploration Permit in Hungary (Igal ll).
CALGARY, Sept. 14 /CNW/ - Winstar Resources Ltd. ("Winstar" or "the Company") (TSX: WIX) provides the following updates:
Updated Drilling Plans for Southern Tunisia:
After detailed review by the Management and the Board, the following drilling plan will be implemented:
The Company will drill a Triassic development well called CS(number sign)13 within the 100% owned and operated Chouech Essaida Triassic oil field in southern Tunisia. This well will be the first to be drilled this fall and will spud in late September as soon as the previously announced contracted rig can be mobilized to the drilling site. Winstar anticipates CS(number sign)13 will take approximately 30 days to drill and complete and is expected to result in incremental production and cash flow, similar to the recent development well, CS(number sign)11 (currently producing 500 barrels of oil per day with no water). Winstar anticipates production start-up of CS(number sign)13 during December 2010.
The second new well this fall will be Chouech Essaida Silurian 1 (CS Sil(number sign)1), replacing in the Company's drilling plans the previously announced re-entry and deepening operation at the Ech Chouech Sud 1 (ECS (number sign)1) well. CS Sil(number sign)1 will be the Company's first exploratory well to test the potential of the Silurian Acacus Formation ("Silurian") on its lands in Southern Tunisia. Based on recent analogous discoveries and further geological studies, the Company anticipates that CS Sil(number sign)1 has the highest probability of finding Silurian oil within its two southern-most concessions, Chouech Essaida and Ech Chouech. An oil discovery can potentially be put on production immediately whereas a gas/condensate discovery would have to wait until the gas transportation infrastructure evolves sufficiently in Southern Tunisia to move the gas to market. The CS Sil(number sign)1 location is situated in the north-east part of the Chouech Essaida concession and is characterized by the following:
Imaged by 3D seismic, this Silurian anomaly represents the
a) typical four way closed type of structure and is also most
proximal to other oil producing Acacus fields in Southern
Tunisia.
Projected to encounter the Silurian approximately 270 meters
b) shallower than ECS(number sign)1, which further enhances the possibility
of making an oil discovery.
Coincident with the Silurian objective, the CS Sil (number sign)1 location
c) has a shallower Triassic exploration target that directly
offsets Winstar's Chouech Essaida Triassic oilfield.
d) This new 4'400 meter well is expected to spud in November of
this year and take approximately 2 months to drill.
Additional information is available on the Company's website (www.winstar.ca) in the September, 2010 presentation available in the "What's New" section.
Tunisian production update
During the first two months of Q3, 2010 Winstar produced an average of 2,100 boepd (90% crude oil and condensate and 10% natural gas) from its assets in Tunisia compared with 1,716 boepd in Q2, 2010.
The Triassic development well CS(number sign)8 continues to be suspended. Since July 28, 2010, CS(number sign)8 has been successfully cleared of debris in the wellbore and its upper zone has been re-perforated. The Company subsequently installed a jet pumping system to re-establish oil production and anticipates that this new system will be operational in the near future. The Company will provide further operational updates as appropriate.
Sale of Exploration Permit Igal ll in west central Hungary
Effective August 31, Winstar Hungary transferred its 100% ownership in the Igal ll Exploration Permit in west-central Hungary to an undisclosed company in exchange for a net profits interest in future production. The assignee will assume all future work commitments and existing surface land and wellbore reclamation liabilities associated with past exploration activities on the Igal II lands.
BOE