The prospect exists for higher allowed prices for natural gas from the D6 block offshore eastern India, where the operating group is looking at restarting flow from certain wells and developing other parts of the block, said Niko Resources Ltd., Calgary.

Canadian companies that held interests in the Qara Dagh block in Iraq’s Kurdistan region relinquished the block in late 2012.

The discovery well of the newly found West Al Baraka field in southern Egypt’s Kom Ombo basin has averaged 120-250 b/d of light oil since being placed on extended test in December 2012, said Sea Dragon Energy Inc., Calgary.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's administration faces a delay in deciding whether to allow high-volume hydraulic fracturing because the state Department of Health said it needed more time to review the practice.

Tullow Oil PLC and Africa Oil Corp. have tested a cumulative 2,351 b/d ofoil from two shallow sands at the Twiga South-1 discovery well on Block 13T in northwestern Kenya, the country’s “first potentially commercial flow rates achieved in Kenya.”

Guyana’s government has issued one petroleum prospecting license each to two subsidiaries of CGX Energy Inc., Toronto.

ExxonMobil Corp. and Rosneft of Russia have agreed to expand a 2011 strategic cooperation agreement to include far more Russian Arctic exploratory acreage, possible Rosneft participation in ExxonMobil’s Point Thomson gas-condensate field in Alaska, and a potential Russian Arctic LNG project.

Jubilant Energy NV, Amsterdam, has spudded the North Atharamura-1 vertical well on the Tripura block in India as a follow-up to its 2012 Matabari-1 indicated gas discovery and to explore deeper formations.

Cequence Energy Ltd., Calgary, has gauged wet gas at its first Dunvegan horizontal gas well in the Simonette-Resthaven area southeast of Grande Prairie, Alta.

CC Energy Development SAL has begun a test program at the B4EW4 exploratory well on Block 4 onshore northern Oman after it encountered oil in four formations.

Gran Tierra Energy Inc., Calgary, is designing a test program to measure whether it has a commercial discovery at its Bretana Norte 95-2-1XD exploratory well in Peru’s Maranon basin, which appears to have confirmed a 1974 heavy oil find on Block 95.

The quest for Arctic oil and gas resources “is not for the faint of heart, nor for those with less-than-deep pockets,” Ernst & Young said in a special report, adding operators confront a harsh climate, limited infrastructure, exceptionally long lead times, and complex logistics for spill containment and recovery. 

Harvest Natural Resources Reservoir Inc., Houston, will start conceptual engineering studies with the aim of evaluating the commerciality of the discovered oil in the Gamba and Dentale reservoirs at Tortue, the company’s previous Ruche oil discovery, and the nearby Walt Whitman and Moubenga oil discoveries offshore Gabon.

AWE Ltd. and Origin Energy Ltd. are studying the commercial feasibility of developing the Senecio tight gas accumulation in Australia’s northern Perth basin 250 km north of Perth.