Faroe Islands
Italy's Agip opened an office in the capital, Torshavn.
An intensive and multifaceted exploration under way for several years by Agip (U.K.) Ltd. and Agip Denmark BV on the Faroes continental shelf included an innovative, proprietary geophysical survey in 1999, Agip parent ENI said.
The Faroes first licensing round is set for January 2000.
Georgia Republic
A unit of CanArgo Energy Corp., Calgary, began gas sales in December 1999 from Ninotsminda field to AES Telasi for delivery to the Gardabani thermal power plant. It is the first domestic gas supply contract for electrical generation in the republic.
Deliveries are to climb to 17 MMcfd. AES Telasi agreed to buy all gas produced by the subsidiary, Ninotsminda Oil Co., in priority to all other suppliers with no maximum or minimum volume.
Northern Ireland
A group led by Antrim Resources International spudded the first of a three-well slim hole program on the 350 sq km Larne License about 25 km north of Belfast. The first well, Carncastle-1, was to be twinned after experiencing mechanical problems at 377 m.
Objective is Triassic Sherwood sandstone. A well drilled in 1981 adjacent to the license had gas shows during drilling but was not tested. It penetrated 648 m of Sherwood, main reservoir at Morecambe Bay and Wytch Farm oil and gas fields.
Tennessee
Ohio Kentucky Oil Corp., Lexington, and Young Oil Corp., Knob Lick, Ky., was to begin development on 2,000 leased acres around an oil discovery in Pickett County near the Overton County line.
The 1 Roger Wright, in 18-1s-53e, flowed 20 bbl/hr of oil at 1,190 ft in Ordovician Stones River and was expected to stabilize at 200-400 bo/d.