DNO International ASA, Oslo, has taken a farmout from Allied Petroleum Exploration Inc. that provides for the transfer to DNO Oman AS of a 75% participating interest (100% paying interest) in Block 36 in the Rub al Khali basin.
The block covers more than 18,000 sq km, and two exploratory wells have confirmed the presence of source rock in the basal Silurian hot shale, an organic-rich shale that has sourced the majority of the oil and gas fields discovered on the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa.
Multiple stacked potential reservoir units have also been identified and mapped on the existing seismic data comprising 10,000 line-km of 2D complemented by high-resolution gravity and aeromagnetic surveys. Technical work to date suggests potential lead sizes in excess of 100 million bbl, the company said.
DNO Oman will assume operatorship and fund reprocessing of existing and acquisition of new 2D seismic data and drill two exploratory wells.
Completion of the Block 36 transfer is subject to satisfaction of certain conditions, including approval by the Ministry of Oil and Gas of the Sultanate of Oman.