Rigzone
by Rigzone Staff
Mediterranean-focused junior oil and gas firm Sound Energy announced Thursday that it has agreed to buy a 25-percent working interest in three onshore gas permits located in Morocco from Maghreb Petroleum Exploration.
The Sidi Moktar Licences cover just over 1,000 square miles in the Essaouira basin, central Morocco. They contain an existing gas discovery in the Lower Liassic layer called Kechoula. Two wells have already been drilled at Kechoula and an extended well test is expected soon, prior to commercial production.
Kechoula is close to existing infrastructure and has been estimated to contain some 293 billion cubic feet of gas. Sound said that the Sidi Moktar Licences are also estimated to have significant Triassic exploration potential.
Sound also announced Thursday two non-board executive appointments. Leonardo Salvadori, previously managing director of Danagas’s joint venture in Egypt, joins as business development director while Mary Hood, previously deputy CFO at Gulf Keystone Petroleum, becomes Sound’s new CFO.
Sound Chief Executive James Parsons commented in a company statement:
“Sidi Moktar is the second material asset in our onshore Moroccan portfolio and secures a 25-percent interest in an already successfully drilled gas discovery with potential near term production, significant deeper exploration potential and in which we are carried to first gas.
“It is also a pleasure to welcome Leonardo Salvadori and Mary Hood, both of whom add further depth to the team as we continue to grow our business counter-cyclically.”
