Key cleared to explore offshore Sardinia
Offshore staff
WEST PERTH, Australia -- Italy’s Economics Ministry has awarded exploration permit status to Key Petroleum’s application block west of Sardinia in the Mediterranean Sea. The new designation for the permit is E.R.54.PU.
Key says this award will allow it to advance its plans for exploration in the area following years of consultations with the Italian authorities.
The Ministry has advised Key that its two Lampedusa application areas off southern Italy also will be converted to exploration permit status.
Recent geological studies on the two blocks (d342C.R-PU and d341C.R-PU) have identified at least four prospective structural leads. Key’s preliminary technical work suggests the structures could contain total un-risked prospective resources of over 1 Bbbl of oil.
However, new seismic data and further studies will be needed to quantify and risk the resources. Water depths in the two blocks range from 50-100 m (164-328 ft). The location is on the Pelagian shelf, a geological extension of Tunisian and Libyan basins, where over 7 Bboe has been discovered to date.
The work commitments include drilling of one well in the West Sardinia block within the next four years, and a well within 30 months on d342C.R-PU.
04/28/2010