Predator Oil & Gas Holdings plc said it had started preparations for drilling at the MOU-1 well in its Guercif licence, onshore Morocco.
The company’s operational planning for the MOU-1 well began on schedule and the construction of the MOU-1 well pad is due to be ready for April 2021.
The AT-5X well is being prepared for additional CO2 injection as the company also reported encouraging swab tests and investigative results for AT-7, AT-8 and AT-10.
The drilling and well engineering programme is being reviewed internally before a third-party audit and any recommended modifications.
“In Morocco we are excited to be in a position to execute the drilling programme as previously announced,” said chief executive Paul Griffiths.
The Guercif licence comprises four exploration permits, I, II, III and IV covering 7,269 km².
The area lies some 250 kilometres due east of and on trend with the Rharb Basin where shallow gas production has been established by SDX Energy Plc for several years.
Guercif also lies approximately 180 kilometres due northwest of Tendrara where deep discovered gas is currently being appraised and potentially developed by Sound Energy Plc.
The licence is for eight years and is split into three parts: an initial period of 30 months; a first extension period of 36 months; and a second extension period also of 30 months. After each period Predator has the option of withdrawing from the licence without entering the next period.
Holders of the licence are the operator Predator Gas Ventures Ltd (75%), which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Predator, and the Moroccan state oil company ONHYM (25%). ONHYM is carried through exploration but funds its pro-rata share of all costs upon a Declaration of Commerciality.
The company’s other interests lie in onshore Trinidad and Ireland.