Talon Petroleum Limited is a junior ASX-listed oil and gas explorer, focused on delivering long-term shareholder value through its UK North Sea strategy.
The North Sea is a world class oil province, with over 50 years of oil and gas production and 43 billion barrels of oil and gas recovered, the region is underpinned by abundant and world class infrastructure, low sovereign risk, and a stable and supportive regulatory environment with attractive fiscal terms.
The North Sea area provides a diverse set of opportunities: from play-opening high-impact targets; to small, high-value, near-field opportunities; to undeveloped discoveries. This diversity accommodates a range of company strategies and allows investors in the area to build a balanced portfolio within a stable regulatory and fiscal regime.
The Oil & Gas Authority (OGA) oversees all oil and gas exploration and production in the United Kingdom.
The OGA places a high-level of importance on exploration and has a strong focus on facilitating productivity within this key area through the following regulatory drivers:
- A large focus on the commissioning of new government-funded seismic surveys to acquire new geophysical data
- A more flexible licensing regime to lower the barriers to entry
- Establishing annual licensing rounds focusing alternately on mature or frontier assets
- Making high-quality seismic, wells, geological mapping and reports openly available
This shift in mentality has seen a positive impact in volume being discovered, which has more than doubled since 2014, where 83 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) were discovered in comparison to 175 million boe discovered in 2017.
According to the OGA, the costs associated with making a discovery have dropped dramatically – from an average of $9 per barrel in 2014 to just over $1 per barrel in 2018. Furthermore, On the UKCS (UK Continental Shelf) around 43% of exploration wells drilled are potentially commercial, compared with the global average of around 36%.
People
Peter Stickland
Non-Executive Chairman
Mr Stickland has over 25 years global experience in oil and gas exploration. Peter is currently a non-executive director of XCD Energy (ASX:XCD) & Melbana Energy (ASX:MAY). Peter was CEO of Melbana from 2014 until early 2018 during which time he led the restructuring of the company and secured the Block 9 PSC in Cuba.
Peter was also CEO of Tap Oil Limited (ASX: TAP) from 2008 until late 2010 during which time he oversaw the evolution of the company into a South East Asia/Australia focused E&P Company. Earlier, Peter had a successful career with BHP Billiton including a range of technical and management positions.
Peter is an Honorary Life Member of the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association Limited (APPEA) and was a member of the APPEA Board from 2009 to 2017.
Matt Worner
Managing Director
Matt Worner is an experienced oil and gas executive who has worked with ASX and London listed E&P companies in various legal, commercial and new ventures/business development roles. He has overseen the completion of multiple asset acquisitions and divestments the world over, including Asia, Africa, US and Australasia as well as significant experience dealing with joint venture partners, host governments and NOCs in these regions.
Matt has strong capital markets experience in Australia and London including ASX and AIM IPO’s and capital raising activity. Through this work, Matt maintains solid contacts and relationships with brokers, funds and NOMADs in both Australia and the UK.”
Stephen Jenkins
Non-Executive Director
A geologist by profession and with a career spanning 35 years, Mr Jenkins is widely recognised as one of the most capable oil and gas executives in the United Kingdom.
Stephen was founder and CEO of Nautical Petroleum plc, an AIM listed E&P company with a significant portfolio of exploration and appraisal assets in the UK North Sea, including the pre-development projects at the Mariner, Kraken and Catcher Field areas. Having listed on AIM with a single asset in 2005, Nautical Petroleum was acquired by Cairn Energy plc in 2012 for £414 million.
Stephen is currently Chairman of the UK Oil and Gas Independents Association, and Non-Executive Chairman of both Savannah Petroleum plc, an AIM listed E&P company focused on Africa and Terrain Energy a private company with oil and gas interests onshore UK and Germany. Stephen was a founding shareholder and director of EnCounter Oil plc, which was acquired by Talon.
Graham Dore
Non-Executive Director
Mr Doré is a founder of EnCounter Oil and has over 30 years experience as an exploration geologist. A proven oil finder, Mr Doré has been involved in some of the most significant hydrocarbon discoveries in the UK North Sea this century.
Paul Young
Geoscience Manager
Mr Young is a founder of EnCounter Oil and has over 35 years experience as an exploration geophysicist. In his career at PanCanadian, EnCana and EnCore Oil, Mr Young has been involved in the discovery of several substantial oil and gas fields in the UK North Sea.
Paul Senycia
Technical Advisor
Mr Senycia has over 35 years international oil and gas experience with companies including Beach Energy Limited, Woodside Energy Limited, Shell International and was most recently head of Exploration and New Ventures at Otto Energy Limited where he is now an non-executive director.
UK NORTH SEA STRATEGY
Against a backdrop of improved industry confidence, the Board and management team of Talon believe the North Sea is the optimal landscape to drive the company forward and deliver long-term shareholder value.
The “UK Oil and Gas: Reserves and Resources” report recently published by the OGA highlights the world-class potential of the North Sea region. Findings of the report include:
- The UK’s petroleum reserves remain significant; the UKCS 2P reserves at the end of 2017 were 5.4 billion boe, which could sustain production for 20+ years
- During 2017, 400 million boe were added to 2P reserves
- Contingent Resource (2C) is significant with a central estimate of discovered, undeveloped resources of 7.5 billion boe
- Exploration success added an additional 181 million boe of Contingent Resources in 2017, and
- The mapped lead and prospect inventory stands at a mean 4.1 billion boe with and additional mean prospective resource of 11.2 billion boe estimated to be contained in plays outside of the mapped leads and prospects.
The highlights above, in conjunction with a stable and supportive regulatory environment, regular and competitive bid rounds for new acreage and world-class infrastructure, provide a backdrop which will allow Talon every opportunity to develop a company of significant scale and value.
UK North Sea Investment Criteria
- Non-operated equity positions of up to 20%
- Primary aim of drilling multiple wells per calendar year
- Drilling will focus on the following fundamentals
- appraisal of known discoveries
- low-risk exploration
- Tie-backs to nearby infrastructure
- Timed exit at the right time of the development cycle
- Participation in bidding rounds
- Early stage entry; farm-out for carry
- Talon to be a partner of choice for well-known companies operating within targeted areas of the North Sea
PROJECT PORTFOLIO
ROCKET PROSPECT
27mmbo best estimate prospective resource
The Rocket Prospect (“Rocket”), which lies within Licence P2392, was acquired by Talon through the acquisition of Encounter Oil Limited (for further information, please refer to the announcement on 31 January 2019).
Highlights:
- Located in the oil-rich western margin of the North Sea Central Graben
- The Licence area borders to the south of the Catcher, Varadero, and Burgman discoveries which were all made by the EnCounter team whilst at EnCore Oil and Rocket is analogous to the Catcher Area Fields
- Like the adjacent discoveries to the north, Rocket has a distinctive amplitude response on seismic data, which allowed a faultless exploration program to discover a significant reserve base and now sees the greater Catcher Field Development Area producing at 70,000 bopd
- A Palaeocene age Cromarty reservoir prospect with additional potential in the overlying Tay Sand
- shallow, low-cost drilling using a jack-up rig
- Covered by continuous 3D seismic data set and with significant well control immediately to the north
- farm-out process underway
SKYMOOS PROSPECT
107mmbo (best estimate prospective resource)
The Skymoos Prospect lies within Licence P2363 located in the Outer Moray Firth and was awarded to EnCounter in October 2018. Skymoos is located to the west of the Scott and Telford Fields, and north of the recent Equinor Burns Sandstone Verbier Discovery.
Highlights:
- The Skymoos prospect covers 2 blocks (14/29a and 14/30a) through a 2018 licence awarded to EnCounter.
- It is the first time the 2 blocks have been licensed together for several decades
- Skymoos is on trend with several developed oil and gas discoveries in an area of prolific hydrocarbon charge
- Analogous to the giant Buzzard Field discovery made by the EnCounter team at PanCanadian
- A structural/stratigraphic closure within the Upper Jurassic Burns Sandstone reservoir
- Additional exploration potential within the underlying Claymore Sandstones
- Imaged on high-quality 3D seismic
- Shallow low-cost drilling of normally pressured reservoir
- farm-out process underway
LICENCE P2396 (CURLEW-A)
10% Interest in a 45mmboe Discovery
Talon has agreed to farm-in to a 10% interest in Licence P2396 (“the Licence”).
The Licence, operated by Corallian Energy Limited (“Corallian”) is located in the prolific Central Graben area of the UK North Sea and contains the Curlew‐A discovery made by Shell in 1979.
Highlights:
- Significant un-appraised Tertiary aged oil discovery by Shell in 1979
- Original well confirmed 10.5m net oil sands 36 °API oil recovered – high quality oil in good quality reservoir
- Schlumberger independently certified gross 2C Contingent Resource of 45mmboe (4.5mmboe net to Talon)
- Simple tie-back to nearby infrastructure
- Significant prospective upside in prolific Forties sands to be tested as part of appraisal drilling
- Appraisal drilling is planned for 3Q 2019
Farm-In terms
- Talon to hold a 10% interest in Licence P2368 subject to regulatory approvals
- Talon net share of 3-year initial phase costs – A$65k
- Subject to entering next licence phase, Talon to participate in the drilling of the Curlew -A appraisal well
- 10% participating interest/15% paying interest capped at gross total well cost of A$21.8 million
- Current well cost estimate – A$18 million
- Talon net well cost A$3.3mm at promote cap
Competent Person’s Report – Schlumberger 2018 (“CPR”)
A CPR on Curlew-A was completed by Schlumberger in October 2018 and provides independent certification of the 45mmboe (gross 2C) Contingent Resources in the Odin and Cromarty reservoirs to be targeted by appraisal drilling in 2019.
Corporate Governance
Talon Petroleum Ltd are committed to good corporate governance taking into account the Company’s size and current activities, and as such has a range of policies and processes in place to ensure the rights of the Company and our shareholders are protected.
ASX Listing Rule 4.10.3 requires ASX listed companies to report on the extent to which they have followed the Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations (“ASX Principles”) 3rdEdition released by the ASX Corporate Governance Council on 27 March 2014, which take effect for the Company from 1 July 2014. The ASX Principles require the Board to consider carefully the development and adoption of appropriate corporate governance policies and practices founded on the ASX Principles.
These Recommendations are not prescriptive, they are guidelines designed to cover companies of all sizes and produce an outcome that is effective, of high quality and integrity. The Company’s Board of Directors has reviewed these Recommendations and in most cases the Company was already achieving the standards required. In a limited number of instances, the Company has determined not to comply with the standard set out in the Recommendations largely due to the Recommendation being considered by the Board to be unduly onerous for a Company of its size. The ASX Corporate Governance Council encourages all companies to communicate openly with stakeholders via electronic methods. In accordance with this, all relevant Corporate Governance material is required to be made publicly available on the Company’s website in a clearly designated section. The links below will provide you access to information on the Company’s policies and procedures as required to be detailed by the ASX Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations.