Kea Petroleum to Concentrate on Puka, Mauku

Kea Petroleum’s next 12 months will be concentrated on moving from an exploration led model to a balance of production and exploration, Proactive Investors said citing company statement. 

The New Zealand-focused group said this will encompass the appraisal and development of the Puka field and the concurrent drilling of Mauku, both of which are located in the Taranaki basin.

Mauku contains potentially un-risked prospective resources of 485Bcf of gas and 28Mmbbls of condensates, while a discovery in April on Puka flowed at 310 barrels per day (bopd) in a test in September.

 Mauku will cost $15 million (before testing) to drill with work now expected to commence in early January 2013 after delays with  consent, extreme weather and challenging access.

Half of the exploration costs will be met through Kea’s partnering arrangement with methanol group Methanex, while advanced negotiations are said to be underway to farm out a further interest in the field.

Kea intends commencing a 50 square kilometre 3D seismic survey over Puka and the surrounding area to addess the possibility of a greater Puka field. The compnay's aim is to achieve production of 2,000 bopd from the Puka, which is located nearby to the required infrastructure, pipelines, roads and sea oil terminal.