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In a deal which extends our existing position in Africa, Dana will be the Operator (55%), working in partnership with Madison Cameroon Oil and Gas Limited (“Madison”) (35%) and SoftRock Oil and Gas Limited (“SoftRock”) (10%).
Bakassi West is situated in the Rio Del Rey Basin in South West Cameroon, adjoining the border of Nigeria on the southern margin of the Niger Delta and covering an area of almost 390 km2. The PSC gives Dana access to prospective, shallow water exploration acreage in a new country in West Africa, supporting our ambition to become a leading international oil and gas company in Europe, Africa and The Middle East.
John Downey, Dana’s Director of International Exploration and New Ventures, who was in Yaounde for yesterday’s signing ceremony, said:
“We’re very pleased to have signed this agreement and look forward to working with Madison and SoftRock on a targeted exploration programme. Our work programme will begin almost immediately with data gathering and geological studies. We will conduct a seismic acquisition programme in 2013 and 2014, and expect to drill our first well by 2015.
“Across Dana we’ll invest more than $5 billion over the next five years to more than double the size of the company. At the same time we’re focused on creating exploration opportunities by gaining access to new countries and provinces, and using our technical expertise to identify reserves for the future. Our entry into Cameroon is an important step on this journey.”
The initial exploration work programme, with an estimated investment of $31 million, will last four years with the acquisition, processing and interpretation of 250km of 2D seismic data, and the drilling of two exploration wells - the second well contingent on the results of the first.
Depending on the results obtained during the first period, this programme could be extended to two further periods of two years each. These supplementary periods would include the acquisition and processing of 100km of 2D seismic data and the drilling of at least one exploration well per period. The total minimum investment for all three periods of eight years’ duration is $71 million.
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