INITIAL RESULTS AT HOPEWELLCONTACT ANNOUNCES INITIAL RESULTS AT HOPEWELL AND RELEASES RESULTS FOR FIRST QUARTER 2011
Contact Exploration Inc. has released the initial results from its vertical Hopewell prospect well drilled in New Brunswick. Well data obtained from logging and the cutting of sidewall cores have been incorporated into a petrophysical assessment, which confirms the significant presence of hydrocarbons (oil).
The 94-per-cent-working-interest Hopewell B55 well was designed to confirm the quality and test the lower Hiram Brook member of the Albert formation, the same interval that has produced nearly one million barrels of sweet light crude from the company's Stoney Creek oil field (based on public data published by the government of New Brunswick). The B55 well resides on an independent structure approximately 10 kilometres south of the Stoney Creek oil field. The B55 well was drilled to 1,110 metres of measured depth, with 981 m total vertical depth drilled in less than four days, far exceeding timing expectations.
After reaching total depth, extensive logging (gamma, di-pole shear sonic, compensated neutron lithology density and high-resolution laterlog array resistivity logs) and sidewall coring programs were completed to better define the quality of the formation. The high-resolution logs and petrophysical assessment over the prospective formation have helped qualify the initial cuttings and core observations, both of which displayed oil-saturated sandstone with extensive light oil streaming from samples. After collection of logs and sidewall cores, Contact has set casing in place in preparation for future completions that will test the productivity of the reservoir.
A total oil column of at least 100 metres with a total 40 m of oil-bearing sands was confirmed by gas response while drilling, heavily oil-stained drill cuttings and sidewall cores, as well as from the petrophysical analysis of the entire log suite. Within the sandstone intervals, the petrophysical analysis has confirmed that a total of 18 m of hydrocarbon-bearing formation was encountered, with an average effective porosity ranging between 6 and 15 per cent, and a low water saturation of 25 per cent. The largest single overthickened sandstone package was 30 m thick, with 13 m of hydrocarbon-containing sands averaging 9-per-cent porosity. Contact believes that this single sandstone interval represents an excellent candidate for future horizontal development, in addition to the opportunities available in the balance of the formation.
Contact's technical team is working to define overall potential, geometry and total oil in place, and using existing seismic and offsetting well control estimates the structure to be a minimum of 1,000 acres in extent. Contact holds all prospective lands surrounding this well, encompassing the entire Hopewell structure at working interests between 94 per cent to 100 per cent.
Contact intends to fully evaluate the sidewall core data that it will receive in the upcoming weeks prior to finalizing a completion strategy to test the production from the B55 well.
Contact believes that the B55 well results may complement the continuing success achieved by the company in New Brunswick at Stoney Creek, from which Contact continues to produce over 100 barrels per day of oil at netback of $70 per barrel.
Contact also announces that it has today filed its unaudited condensed interim consolidated financial statements for the three-month period ended June 30, 2011, and the related management's discussion and analysis on SEDAR.
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