Friday 25 September 2020

BPC, the Caribbean and Atlantic margin focused oil and gas company, with exploration, production, appraisal and development assets across the region, is pleased to announce that it has received formal notification from Stena Drilling, consistent with the existing contract, nominating the Stena IceMAX as the intended drill rig for the upcoming Perseverance #1 drilling campaign. The notification has also indicated the start of the contracted window (which commences 15 December 2020) as the approximate time for the arrival of the drill ship in the field, with an associated anticipated well spud date some 3 - 4 days later, once the rig is on station.

Highlights

· Stena IceMAX nominated as the drilling facility for the drilling and completion of the Perseverance #1 well

· Date for anticipated spud of Perseverance #1 prior to Christmas 2020

· Perseverance #1 well targeting recoverable P50 oil resources 0.77 billion barrels, with an upside of 1.44 billion barrels

· The Stena IceMAX is one of the most advanced drillships in the world, dynamically positioned and dual mast drillship designed specifically for safe and efficient operations in a wide variety of drilling conditions

· The drillship facilities include a managed pressure drilling (MPD) system integrated into the ship, to maximise the safety integrity of operations and optimise the pace of drilling through anticipated reservoir formations

· Given confirmation of the anticipated arrival time for the IceMAX in the field, project implementation, previously defined and ongoing in March 2020 prior to the Covid-19 related postponement of work, will now be reactivated to align with a spud in approximately 3 months

· Logistics plans reactivated; previously delivered critical path/long-lead items inspected pending mobilisation from warehouses; Covid-19 impact mitigation plans being implemented and final revisions to cost estimates made

Simon Potter, Chief Executive Officer of BPC, said:

"In March 2020, the Company was within weeks of commencing the drilling of the Perseverance #1 well when compelled to defer operations due to the anticipated impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. As might be expected when such an advanced well plan is halted so close to final implementation, major elements were already in train or sufficiently well established such that reactivation is a relatively straightforward matter. With the clarity of the anticipated delivery date of the Stena IceMAX into the field this work can now be reactivated against a detailed timetable and progressed. I very much look forward to updating shareholders in the coming months as we get closer to drilling."