Manas seeking more oil fields, partners in Tajikistan

Nov. 6, 2013
Manas Petroleum Corp.’s DWM Petroleum AG subsidiary plans to acquire oil producing assets in Tajikistan, and its CJSC Somon Oil unit is negotiating with several experienced entities to farm out a majority of its existing interest in two exploratory blocks.

Manas Petroleum Corp.’s DWM Petroleum AG subsidiary plans to acquire oil producing assets in Tajikistan, and its CJSC Somon Oil unit is negotiating with several experienced entities to farm out a majority of its existing interest in two exploratory blocks.

DWM is buying 65% for $10.1 million and seeking to acquire the other 35% of a Tajik company that operates fields that are producing 300 b/d of oil from below 100 m and have the potential through rehabilitation of being restored to earlier levels of 50 to 3,500 b/d/well or more.

Lack of investment and access to newer technology allowed the fields to become run down following Soviet Union break-up. Beyond rehabilitation, the fields have potential for further development, exploration, and appraisal. Manas did not give the names or locations of the fields.

About 100 wells are ready for workover, and DWM is analyzing more than 300 more wells and developing an initial work program.

Meanwhile, DWM is negotiating with several experienced groups from Russia, China, and the European Union to farm out as much as 70% of Somon Oil’s 90% interest in two exploration blocks that it estimates to contain risked resources of more than 400 million bbl of oil. DWM is also discussing the possibility of combining the exploration project with the rehabilitation project.

The exploratory project has two drill-ready prospects, and drilling is expected to start upon signing the agreements with the new partner. One target is located between two fields near producing wells. The second is a subsalt prospect with analogs in producing fields in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

In the past few months, all original seismic over the subsalt target has been reprocessed and the target relocated to a far less risky spot, Manas said.