Scots oil explorer offers prospect of ‘jam tomorrow’ as N. Sea reserves soar but interim losses deepen

Parkmead Group – the Aberdeen-based North Sea oil and gas explorer – promised shareholders ‘jam tomorrow’ while it reported an interim loss for the six month period to 31 Dec 2017.

• On the positive side, there was a 67% hike in oil reserves in place to 46.3 million barrels after it raised its share in two oil fields to 100%.
• But on the down side, the pre-tax loss of £4.518 million was marginally higher than the loss of £4.511 million at the half-way period in 2016.

In August 2017, Parkmead completed the acquisition of a 50% interest in North Sea Licence P.2209 from Verus Petroleum, which contains the Farne Extension prospect and a further four prospective leads.

This acquisition doubled Parkmead’s equity in the licence to 100%. Licence P.2209 comprises two adjacent blocks, Block 42/19 and Block 42/20b. The range of prospects and leads within this licence, which is operated by Parkmead, have the potential to contain 175 billion cubic feet of gas initially in place on a most likely, P50 basis.

Outwith the accounting period, in February 2018, Parkmead announced increased its equity in the Perth and Dolphin oil fields in the Central North Sea from 60.5% to 100%. The Perth and Dolphin fields lie at the core of Parkmead’s Greater Perth Area (“GPA”) oil hub project.  Perth and Dolphin are located in the Moray Firth area of the UK Central North Sea, which contains very large oil fields such as Piper, Claymore and Tartan.

But executive chairman Tom Cross told shareholders that better days are a-coming.

He said: “Parkmead has delivered considerable growth in both its asset base and financial position in the period to 31 December 2017 by increasing equity in core assets, doubling Parkmead’s <insignificant> gross profit and increasing gas production from our low-cost onshore Netherlands gas fields.

“Parkmead is well positioned for the future. We have excellent regional expertise, significant cash resources, and a growing, low-cost gas portfolio.

“We will continue to build upon the inherent value in our existing interests with a balanced, acquisition-led growth strategy, securing opportunities that maximise long-term value for our shareholders.”

• The US Apache corporation has announced a significant oil discovery on Block 9/18a in the North Sea.

The Garten discovery, four miles south of the Beryl Alpha platform, contains some 10 million barrels of light oil. First-oil production is scheduled for Spring 2019.

3 Apr 2018