Project Profile
Location: 10 kms southeast of the port city of Vlore, southern Albania
Area: 306 sq km
Reserves: 26.4 million barrels (best case)
Exploration period: 6 years (starting February, 2017)
Production period: 25 years
The Velca Block is located 10 km southeast of the port city of Vlore in southern Albania. Velca is situated near to the Petrolifera Italo Albanese (PIA) terminal, which handles most of Albania\'s oil exports, as well as several of the country\'s largest fields. The hydrocarbon reservoirs associated with the Velca Block are Ionian subthrust carbonates, similar in structure to reservoirs of the foothills of western Alberta.
On Dec 2, 2015, Pennine received notification from licensee state-owned Albpetrol that Pennine had been confirmed by the Republic of Albania\'s Ministry of Energy and Industry as the successful bidder for the Velca Block. In February 2017, Pennine Petroleum signed a Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) with Albpetrol for the exploration and development of the Velca Block in Albania. The PSA consists of an Exploration Phase and a Drilling Phase. Under the Exploration Phase, Pennine and Albpetrol will conduct an examination of all currently existing geological, geophysical and well data , and conduct any processing or re-processing of data to select drilling targets. The Drilling Phase will consist of a commitment to drill a minimum of two wells, to a minimum depth of 2,500 metres. This new six-year exploratory lease is convertible to a 25-year production lease, upon discovery of oil and/or natural gas accumulations.
Operators:
Pennine Petroleum Corporation: Operator with 50% interest
Albpetrol: 50% interest
Contractors:
Apex Energy Consultants: Independent survey of recoverable reserves estimate