Sound Energy announces the award of the production concession relating to the Tendrara gas discovery in Eastern Morocco by the Moroccan Ministry of Energy.   

The production concession award covers an area of 133.5 Km² and follows an application by the Company and its partners in June 2018.  The field development plan underpinning this award includes:

• the drilling, pre first gas, of up to 5 new horizontal development wells, in addition to recompletion of the existing TE-6 and TE-7 wells.
• the construction of a gas treatment plant and compression station ("CPF") and a 120 km 20 inch Tendrara Gas Export Pipeline ("TGEP") connecting the CPF and the delivery point to the Gazoduc Maghreb Europe pipeline. As already announced, front end engineering and design ("FEED") is underway for both the CPF and TGEP.
• the achievement of first gas in approximately two years at an expected mid case production rate of around 60 million standard cubic feet per day over a minimum period of 10 years during which it is currently estimated, subject to optimisation of drilling plans, that an additional 10 to 13 wells will be drilled to maintain this production rate. 

The Company expects to be in a position to take final investment decision on the Tendrara development once key development milestones have been secured, including a gas sales agreement, FEED development capital funding and local regulatory administrative formalities.

On 7 June, 2018, Sound announced that it had signed heads of terms with a consortium comprising Enagas, Elecnor and Fomento for the FEED and conditional construction and financing of all the infrastructure required, including the TGEP and CPF under a 'build-own-operate-transfer' structure.

James Parsons, Sound Energy's CEO, commented:
"I am delighted with the award of the first development concession in Eastern Morocco, which is a critical step in commercialising our gas discovery.   

The Company continues to make excellent progress on all fronts, including FEED, the gas sales agreement and ground works at TE-9."