PGNiG will gain a 40% participating interest in Karpaty West and a 20% participating interest in Karpaty East. Aurelian will continue to act as operator and will hold the balance of the participating interests.
Under the terms of the arrangements, PGNiG will provide the joint venture with access to its database, comprising wells in the region and approximately 2,000km of seismic data. Aurelian will perform the reprocessing and interpretation of this seismic data as the first part of the ongoing programme. This is expected to lead to the acquisition of new seismic in the second half of 2010.
The Karpaty West and East concessions cover 2,230sqkm and 1,296sqkm respectively in the prospective trend of the western Polish Carpathians. Aurelian also partners PGNiG, with a 25% interest and PGNiG as operator, in the Bieszczady blocks, covering a further 3,547sqkm in the eastern Polish Carpathians.
Rowen Bainbridge, CEO of Aurelian, said: “Aurelian is delighted to be working in close partnership with PGNiG in this highly prospective area. The provision of their data base and access to their long experience in the region will undoubtedly accelerate our programmes for exploring the region. The value of the data base cannot be over-estimated: to replicate it would cost at least $40m at today’s prices. It is also a testament to the quality of the Aurelian team that a company such as PGNiG will work with Aurelian as operator of these concessions.
“Aurelian now partners PGNiG in over one-third of the whole of the Polish Carpathian Fold Belt and holds adjacent acreage on the Slovakian side of the border. With PGNiG’s knowledge of the area and unrivalled expertise, Aurelian looks forward to working with them to unlock the reserves in concessions we hold there.”
