Each one in plain English, with the numbers worked through for a shareholder.
19 Oct 2010drilling progress report● Neutral
Weekly report: Encounter-1 (Beach 90%) is at 2,073 m, with 1,039 m drilled in the week. 13 3/8 inch surface casing is set at 1,030.8 m and the 12¼ inch hole is being drilled. Target depth is 3,625 m. No shale results yet.
Petratherm reports wireline runs found no blockage in Paralana-2, reaching 3,688 m, the perforation depth, and confirmed well integrity. The cause of the August obstruction is still being investigated. Perforation and injectivity tests are expected to restart in October. This reverses the earlier obstruction concern.
Somerton Energy, in which Beach is the largest shareholder (stated as 57%), will earn up to 5% of PRL2 by funding a third of the Wombat-2 and Boundary Creek-2 testing, up to $3.33m. Beach operates; Wombat-4 stimulation is expected in Q1 2011. This extends the Lakes Oil Gippsland farm-in.
Conference presentation in London on Cooper Basin shale gas, covering the Nappamerri Trough geology and the two-well program. It repeats the potential gas in place of over 200 Tcf and the 66 MMboe reserves. No new results are given.
Amended version of the same London shale gas presentation; the visible change is removal of a draft internal note in the compliance slide. No new information.
Petratherm says a wireline crew is investigating the blockage at 3,200 m in Paralana-2 (Beach 21%) that stopped perforation in late August. The three-day check should report next week. Perforation and an injectivity test come before the main stimulation.
September drilling report: Encounter-1 began 3 October and is at 952 m. Canunda-1 testing resumes next week after fishing wireline out. Coonatie-20 is cased and suspended as a future gas producer. Henderson 4-26/35H is drilling its lateral, targeting 600,000 bbl recoverable (90,000 net).
Adelaide Energy reports Encounter-1, the first PEL 218 shale gas well (Beach 90% operator), began drilling on 3 October after slipping from earlier dates. It is a vertical test to about 3,700 m, taking around 50 days, with Holdfast-1 next.
Beach gives details of its 1c final dividend (0.5c franked), paid 24 September. The dividend reinvestment plan issue price is 64.77 cents after the 5% discount. It is not underwritten. This confirms the dividend announced with the FY10 results.
Exploration began in Tanzania's Lake Tanganyika South (Beach 100%): Fugro started airborne magnetic and gravity surveys on 9 September, taking up to three months. Separately, pre-emption waivers are in for Mesaha (15%); Abu Sennan (22%) still awaits one EGPC waiver, and both need Egyptian approval.
Beach and its BMG partners settled all claims with BW Offshore for a total US$32.5m cash payment within 14 days, with terms confidential. This resolves the dispute, which earlier context put at a claim of about US$90.1m.
Beach received the $43.2m Arrow contingent payment for Tipton West, taking total proceeds to $383.3m and cash to about $200m. Up to $26.8m more may follow. This resolves the receivable flagged in earlier results.
Drillsearch says Beach, as operator, considers the Brownlow, Canunda, Middleton and Udacha wet gas discoveries commercial. Beach puts their 2P reserves at 5.6 MMboe gross, converting contingent resources; Gaffney Cline's review of this is still in progress. It resolves the earlier testing-only position.
August drilling report: Canunda-1 testing is still suspended by rain. Encounter-1 (Beach 90%) is now scheduled for mid September, with the rig mostly on site. Coonatie-19 is cased and suspended, Coonatie-20 is at 2,779 m, and Henderson 4-26/35H spuds this week.
Petratherm reports the Paralana-2 injectivity test is delayed at least three weeks after equipment hit an obstruction at 3,200 m, needing a coil tubing clean-out in late September. Main Q4 2010 stimulation is still expected to hold.
FY10 net profit after tax fell to $33.1m (underlying $40.8m) on $489m revenue, hit by Cooper flooding and the Tipton West sale. 2P reserves held at 66 MMboe, contingent 297 MMboe, cash $170m. Final dividend 1c.
Beach confirms its 1c final dividend, 0.5c franked: record date 10 September, paid 24 September. The dividend reinvestment plan carries a 5% discount and the dividend is not underwritten.
Results presentation repeating FY10 figures: production 7.3 MMboe, 2P reserves 66 MMboe, net profit $33m, nil debt, $170m cash and a $43m Arrow receivable. No new information beyond the results release.
Encounter-1, first Nappamerri Trough shale gas well (PEL 218, Beach 90%), is now expected to spud early to mid September after the rig moved in; this slips from late August. Henderson 4-26/35H rig is moving in. Henderson 4-25H is producing about 500 bopd.
Adelaide Energy (10% of PEL 218) confirms Beach as operator expects Encounter-1 to spud early to mid September 2010. Adelaide Energy is carried through the first $25m gross of spending. It repeats Beach's own update.
Petratherm says Paralana-2 work starts this week: perforation and a small water injection test, then full fracture stimulation in Q4 2010. This slips the earlier August stimulation start; it helps pick the Paralana-3 location (Beach 21%).
Somerton's media release on its $13.8m raising puts Beach's holding at 46.07% (earlier context said 51.9%). Somerton is evaluating an incomplete, non-binding Beach farm-in offer and targets unconventional oil.
Drillsearch is selling its 2% Naccowlah Block interest to Bounty Oil & Gas for $1.15m. Beach's 38.5% share in the Santos-operated block is not affected by this announcement.
13 Aug 2010capital raising announcement● NeutralMajor
Somerton, 51.9% held by Beach per earlier context, is raising $13.8m at 13c: a $0.7m placement and a 2-for-1 rights issue, 90% underwritten. Beach backs it and signs a Strategic Alliance Agreement providing support services; $0.7m repays Mitsui.
Beach signed an unconditional farm-in with Lakes Oil, firming the 14 April conditional deal. It can earn up to 50% of onshore Gippsland PRL2 (Wombat tight gas) by spending $50m: 15% for $10m in stage one, then up to 50%. Needs Victorian government approval.
Drillsearch says extended production testing of Canunda-1 (Beach 50% operator) resumes about 9-14 Aug for at least two weeks, with flow rates raised, to size the wet gas accumulation. Beach added storage and trucking after rain halted the test; up to 18,000 bbl expected.
Second release on the same Kuwait Energy deal: 22% of Abu Sennan and 15% of Mesaha for up to US$33m. It adds that North Shadwan NS-377 first production is expected in the second half of 2010, with at least four Abu Sennan wells in FY11.
4 Aug 2010asset acquisition disposition▲ GoodMajor
Beach agreed to buy from Kuwait Energy a 22% interest in Egypt's Abu Sennan concession and 15% of Mesaha, for up to US$33m of work programs over two years. Completion needs Egyptian approval; it widens Beach's Egypt portfolio beyond North Shadwan.