Ascent Resources Announces Further Slovenian Operations Update

Ascent Resources Plc, the onshore Caribbean, Hispanic American and European focused energy and natural resources company, provides a further update on the PG-11A well at the Petišovci tight gas field, in Slovenia.

As announced on 5 February 2021, the PG-11A well was put back into production on 4 February with a view to accreting additional JV revenues and to enable an evaluation of the source of an identified pressure anomaly and required remedial action. Since then the well has demonstrated strong initial gas production levels of circa 2,000 scm per hour. However, due to the unexpectedly high production exceeding the COVID-19 induced limited domestic local demand, the well had to be temporarily scaled back (and temporarily shut-in at times). Demand is exceptionally low this February due to local industrial buyers operating single shifts and reduced capacity through the month, which is expected to revert to full capacity in March.

Prior to being shut-in in December 2019, the PG-11A Well was exporting its sales gas to INA in Croatia via pipeline and whilst this evacuation route remains available to the JV partners, it requires a minimum offtake commitment which can only be determined after an extended well test. The JV is therefore, for the moment, only supplying local demand and will be temporarily reducing and potentially intermittently suspending production until local demand increases again, which is expected over the next few weeks. Once the demand increases and full production is re-established, an extended well test can be performed and the potential for supply of export gas to INA in Croatia with the associated minimum commitment can be determined. Further updates will be made as appropriate.