Sound Oil, Mediterranean-focused upstream energy company, has entered into a farm-in agreement with the Moroccan Oil and Gas Investment Fund for the Tendrara Licence onshore the North African country
The Tendrara Licence is currently owned 75 per cent by OGIF and 25 per cent by National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines (ONHYM), Moroccan national hydrocarbon and mineral company, which has a 25 per cent carried interest.
The onshore licence includes two stranded gas discoveries with low risk appraisal potential and significant blue sky exploration upside and covers eight blocks across a total of 14,500 sq km in the north east of Morocco.
Sound Oil CEO James Parsons said, “The Tendrara asset, with two existing discoveries and resource potential of multiple trillion cu/m, has a very attractive risk/reward profile, builds on our core technical and commercial strengths and dovetails well with our Italian portfolio.”
Seven wells have been drilled on the Tendrara Licence to date, of which five discovered hydrocarbons and two were tested successfully. The licence already has 4,400 km of 2D seismic and 500 sq km of 3D seismic. Gas produced from the Tendrara Licence is expected to either go to the domestic market or be connected to the Gazoduc Maghreb Europe (GME) gas export pipeline.
Sound Oil has, subject to regulatory approvals, has agreed to assume operatorship of the Tendrara Licence with a 55 per cent working interest and OGIF and ONYHM retaining 20 per cent and 25 per cent respectively.
Under the terms of the farm-in agreement, Sound Oil will pay the complete cost of three wells, of which only the first well would be a firm commitment.
The first well would appraise the larger of two existing discoveries in the Tendrara Licence as well as proving up sufficient reserves to design of the infrastructure required to commercialise the gas.
