Canadian energy company Touchstone Exploration Inc yesterday announced that it received regulatory approval for renewal of its East Brighton offshore exploration and production licence.
The renewed license is for an initial six years with the option to extend a further 25 years upon commercial discovery.The licensed area is a contiguous block of approximately 20,300 acres directly adjacent to the Brighton Marine field in the shallow coastal water along the southwest coastline of Trinidad in the Gulf-of-Paria. It has produced approximately 60 million barrels of oil to date.
A successful exploration programme was completed in 1999 with two wells drilled, cased, and tested. Both wells tested commercial quantities of oil that resulted in a declaration of commerciality in Sub-Block A, as well as confirming the prospectivity of the overall trend. James Shipka, Touchstone's vice president, Geosciences described the East Brighton property as "a significant asset and presents a great opportunity for the company".
Technical studies and revaluation of existing 3D seismic will be done within two years of the effective date of the renewal, followed by drilling of a 5,000 foot exploration well by the end of year three. Touchstone forecasts that its share of these commitments to be approximately US$3 million over the three year period. The commitments are expected to be funded through future cash flows.Formal signing of the license is expected to take place in Port of Spain next month.