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Jamaica Update: Commissioning of Drilling Study

In brief · summary, not quotable

Commissioned drilling study for Jamaican assets to assess rig availability and operational readiness for potential exploration drilling.

  • Colibri prospect mean prospective resources 406 MMbo
  • Thunderball lead mean prospective resources 603 MMbo
  • Walton-Morant Licence total prospective resources over 7 billion barrels
  • Colibri water depth c. 750m
  • Thunderball water depth c. 1,900m
Full announcement

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United Oil & Gas Plc (AIM: "UOG"), the oil and gas company with a high-impact exploration asset in Jamaica and a development asset in the UK, is pleased to announce the appointment of NRG Well Management ("NRG") to undertake a drilling rig and long-lead availability study.

Highlights:

  • Supporting the Farm-out Process: Provides current market-based operational planning data to inform the Company's ongoing farm-out discussions.
  • Advances Drilling Readiness: NRG engaged to assess rig availability, market day rates, and procurement schedules, establishing key enablers for potential drilling.
  • Targeting High-Impact Prospects: Focused on capability for drilling the Colibri prospect (406 MMbo² mean prospective resources) and potential follow-on drilling at the Thunderball lead (603 MMbo² mean prospective resources).

The study advances operational planning for a potential future exploration drilling programme on the Company's Walton-Morant Licence, offshore Jamaica, which contains over 7 billion¹ barrels of prospective resource potential. NRG will engage directly with international rig contractors and supply chain vendors to evaluate:

  • Rig Availability: Direct market engagement to assess rig suitability, availability, indicative commercial rates, and mobilisation factors for offshore drilling rigs.
  • Dual-Target Suitability: Technical capability for Colibri (c. 750m water depth) with additional assessment for deep-water drilling at Thunderball (c. 1,900m water depth).
  • Long-Lead Equipment & Critical Well Services: Assessment of key long-lead drilling equipment and critical well service packages, and indicative procurement timelines.
  • Logistics Network & Supply Chain: Screening of regional supply chain and logistics support infrastructure across the Gulf of Mexico, Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad, alongside Jamaican port readiness.

NRG Well Management is a leading provider of international well engineering and project management services, with a focus on delivering safe and efficient operations across the full life cycle of exploration, appraisal, development, production, and decommissioned wells.

The commissioning of this study is a forward-planning and market assessment review and does not constitute a commitment, at this time, by United to drill a well. Any potential future drilling programme would be subject to, amongst other matters, the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals from the Government of Jamaica and execution of commercial agreements.

The Company expects the study to be completed in the coming weeks and will update the market on its findings in due course. Furthermore, a summary of the Company's Walton-Morant licence prospect and lead portfolio, including Colibri and Thunderball, is provided in the appendix to this RNS.

Donal Meehan, Chief Operating Officer, commented:

"This drilling study marks an important step in our operational planning to advance the Walton-Morant Licence towards a potential future drilling programme. It will provide a current, market-based assessment of rig suitability, availability, commercial conditions, and the long-lead items required to drill Colibri and Thunderball or similar targets.

Colibri and Thunderball represent substantial exploration opportunities within the Licence, with a combined potential of over 1 billion barrels3 of mean prospective resources out of the 7 billion barrels1 of prospective resources identified on the licence to date.

By undertaking this study now, we are positioning the Company for operational readiness ahead of future drilling, whilst providing valuable information to support our on-going work as we push to conclude the Jamaican farm-out process. We look forward to updating the market with the study results in the coming weeks."

Appendix:

Walton-Morant Asset Overview

The Walton-Morant Licence covers approximately 22,400 km² and contains over 7 billion¹ barrels of prospective resource potential across United's portfolio of identified prospects and leads.

Colibri Prospect - Colibri is a large exploration prospect in the Walton Basin with mean prospective resources of 406 MMbo², and a P10 high estimate of 966 MMbo². The prospect is defined on 3D seismic and comprises a large, well-defined structural closure within the Walton Basin. Located in approximately 750 metres of water, Colibri can potentially be drilled using a relatively broad range of floating drilling units, including suitable semi-submersibles and drillships.

Thunderball Lead - Thunderball is a significant exploration lead in the Morant Basin with mean prospective resources of 603 MMbo², and a P10 high estimate of 1,356 MMbo², and lies in approximately 1,900 metres of water. Thunderball forms part of a striking series of large, tilted fault-block structures mapped across the Morant Basin on 2D seismic data, with a number of substantial neighbouring prospects and potential look-alike follow-on opportunities along the same structural trend. This combination of lead scale and multiple analogous structures highlight the wider exploration potential of the Morant Basin beyond Thunderball itself.

Table 1: Over 7 Billion bbls is UOG's arithmetic sum of the Unrisked Mean/Mid-Case Prospective Resources for each prospect/lead identified within the Walton-Morant Licence boundary by UOG and previous operators.

NameAssignationLocationMean/Mid Prospective Resources (MMBo / MMboe)
Lead 11FLeadWalton Basin1126
ZumbadorLeadMorant Basin925
ThunderballLeadMorant Basin603 ²
ColibriProspectWalton Basin406 ²
Lead DLeadWalton Basin382
MoonrakerLeadMorant Basin323 ²
Cascade CentralLeadPedro Bank275
StreamertailProspectWalton Basin221 ²
OrioleProspectWalton Basin220 ²
BoagLeadWalton Bank219
Lead 6ILeadWalton Bank205
GoldeneyeLeadMorant Basin174 ²
MoneypennyLeadMorant Basin173 ²
BlofeldLeadMorant Basin171 ²
EarspotLeadWalton Bank145
SquireLeadWalton Basin139
Lead 12MLeadWalton Basin133
Lead 6HLeadWalton Bank120
Lead 12VLeadWalton Basin111
Cascade SouthLeadPedro Bank101
Lead6QLeadWalton Bank101
Cascade EastLeadPedro Bank86
RumpspotLeadWalton Bank85
Lead 7PLeadWalton Bank76
Lead 7NLeadWalton Bank70
Lead 10KLeadWalton Basin70
Lead 12LLeadWalton Basin70
Lead 7TLeadWalton Bank60
BluefieldsLeadWalton Bank57
TodyProspectWalton Bank53 ²
MangoLeadWalton Basin53
GuaniLeadWalton Bank53
Lead 12ULeadWalton Basin41
JawsLeadMorant Basin39 ²
EuphoniaProspectWalton Bank38 ²
Lead 6GLeadWalton Bank38
BoobyLeadWalton Basin34
Lead 10BLeadWalton Basin32
Lead 7RLeadWalton Bank28
Lead 7SLeadWalton Bank28
TOTAL7,284¹

Glossary

MMBo - Million Barrels of Oil

MMBoe - Million Barrels of Oil Equivalent

Footnotes

¹ Over 7 Billion bbls is UOG's arithmetic sum of the Unrisked Mean/Mid-Case Prospective Resources for each prospect/lead identified within the Walton-Morant Licence boundary by UOG and previous operators

² Gross Unrisked Mean Prospective Resources per GaffneyCline Report, 2020

3 UOG's Arithmetic sum of the GaffneyClines' Gross Unrisked Mean Case Prospective Resources for Colibri (406 MMbo) and Thunderball (603 MMbo)

Cleaned text: letterheads, contacts and legal notices removed. View the original announcement ↗ · Company filings. Not investment advice.

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