Niko Resources Ltd. (Niko Resources) has been selected by the Indonesian Government as the successful bidder in three additional exploration blocks. The first block, Halmahera - Kofiau is offshore west Papua, Indonesia and will be operated by Niko Resources who will hold a 50% interest. The block covers 1.2 million acres and is located in water depths from 0 to over 1,200 metres.
The block is adjacent to the Kofiau Block that was awarded to Niko Resources and its partners in May 2009. Both blocks are located in a geological setting similar to the nearby Salawati Basin where in excess of 500 million barrels of recoverable oil reserves have been discovered in Miocene carbonates. The extension of the Salawati play into the Kofiau and Halmahera – Kofiau Blocks could establish an important new oil production trend in eastern Indonesia.
The second block, West Papua IV is offshore southwest Papua, Indonesia where Niko Resources will hold a 50% interest. The block covers 1.5 million acres and is located in water depths from 50 to 2,000 metres.
The block is in the same geological trend as the Kumawa PSC block awarded to Niko Resources and partners in May 2009. The block is associated with adjacent areas containing significant oil and gas reserves. The nearby Bintuni basin located in west Papua has discovered gas reserves of 17 TCF. The thick, gas bearing Jurassic sandstone reservoirs in the Bintuni Basin are direct analogs to the exploration targets in the West Papua IV and Kumawa Blocks. Extensive sea floor coring and geochemical analyses indicate the possibility of an oil dominated petroleum system in these two blocks.
The third block, East Bula is offshore northeast Seram, Indonesia and Niko Resources will hold a 50% non-operating interest. The block covers 1.5 million acres and is located in water depths range from shallow to greater than 1,000 meters.
The block is located between the island of Seram and the Seram PSC block awarded to Niko Resources and its partners in November 2008. Exploration and production activities onshore Seram began as early as 1897 with the discovery and production of oil. Over 100 million barrels of recoverable oil have since been discovered. The onshore geologic oil producing trends extend into the offshore East Bula and Seram blocks where a large regional reconnaissance study indicates the presence of numerous oil and gas seeps from the seafloor.