Forte Energy Limited (ASX: FEL), a company focused on energy acquisition and development, today announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Peritas LLC, has been named as the highest bidder on two new oil and gas leases in the National Petroleum Reserve of Alaska (NPR-A). The company bid US$27 per acre for a total of 13,220 acres adjacent to its existing Umiat oil field acreage. This strategic acquisition positions Forte Energy to potentially expand its resources in a region experiencing renewed interest and investment.
The leases are believed to contain a westerly extension of the Umiat oil field and a downdip, higher energy prospect exhibiting compelling seismic Amplitude vs Offset (AVO) anomalies. Existing 3D seismic data, acquired in 2008, indicates a prospective area of approximately 22 square kilometres. Forte Energy views this data as highly encouraging, suggesting the potential for significant prospective resources within a high-energy reservoir system. Technical studies will commence immediately to fully delineate the prospect and confirm prospective resource estimates.
The recent NPR-A lease sale saw strong participation, attracting 430 bids and generating a total of US$250 million, with US$163 million attributed to the apparent high bids across 187 leases. Major industry players such as Repsol/Shell, ConocoPhillips, and ExxonMobil also participated in the sale. Kevin Pendergast, Bureau of Land Management Alaska State Director, hailed the sale as historic, indicating a bright future for the NPR-A.
Dougal Ferguson, Non-Executive Chairman of Forte Energy, expressed his delight with the successful bid, stating that the new leases benefit from existing 3D seismic coverage, which would be extremely costly to acquire today. He added that the company looks forward to analysing the enticing AVO anomalies in detail as a precursor to defining prospective resources. The Forte Energy Board authorised the release of this announcement, which contains forward-looking statements subject to risks and uncertainties.
