Longboat Energy, the emerging full-cycle E&P company, today announces its entry into Malaysia and provides an operational update.

Malaysian Bid Round

Under the Malaysian Bid Round (‘MBR’) 2022 Longboat, via its subsidiary Longboat Energy (2A) Limited, has been awarded by Petroliam Nasional Berhad (‘PETRONAS’) a Production Sharing Contract (“PSC”) for Block 2A, a large exploration block offshore Sarawak with material gas resource potential. MBR is an annual licensing round organised by Malaysia Petroleum Management (MPM), PETRONAS as the custodian of petroleum resources in Malaysia.

Longboat will become operator with a 36.75% interest in the PSC alongside partners Petronas Carigali Sdn. Bhd (40%), Petroleum Sarawak Exploration & Production Sdn. Bhd. (7.5%) and Topaz Number One Limited (15.75%).

Block 2A is offshore Sarawak, north-west of the prolific Central Luconia hydrocarbon province, outboard of recent gas discoveries. The Block covers approx. 12,000km² and is located in water depths of between 100-1,400 metres. One of the world’s largest LNG facilities, the Bintulu LNG plant, is located onshore on the coast of Sarawak.

A number of large prospects across multiple plays have been identified across Block 2A. The main prospect is a large anticlinal structure called Kertang with a closure of over 100km² at multiple levels and significant volume potential representing multiple trillions of cubic feet of gas in stacked reservoirs. Seismic indicators for the presence of gas can be observed in the area and over the crest of the prospect. These indicators, together with geochemical analysis of sea floor samples over the main prospect provide strong evidence of the area being gas-prone.

PETRONAS is actively supporting new entrants in the region and the Company believes establishing a presence in the Malaysia via the Block 2A PSC will open-up further opportunities in the future.

Norwegian Portfolio

Norway remains Longboat’s key focus area. Having made four potentially commercial discoveries in less than 18 months, the Company is now focussed on maturing these assets towards development and realising the value that has been created.

On 11 January 2023, the Company announced that it had been awarded the Lotus prospect (Longboat, 30%) in the Norwegian 2022 APA Licensing Round. Lotus is located immediately adjacent to Longboat’s Kveikje discovery (Longboat, 10%) and addssignificantly to the materiality of Longboat’s acreage position in this area.

Kveikje and Lotus, on success, are likely to form part of the new Equinor operated Ring Vei Vest (“RVV”) cluster development project. The RVV project will develop multiple oil discoveries made west of the Troll field in recent years. This includes the Rover Sør oil discovery announced last week by Equinor, which further increases the size of the multi-hundred-million-barrel RVV development project.

Following a short hiatus in anticipation of the APA award, Longboat is actively pursuing monetisation options for its position in the area. This process has attracted significant interest and Longboat anticipates being able to provide the market with a further update during the first quarter of 2023.

The Transocean Norge rig is booked for the high-impact Velocette exploration well (Longboat, 20%), which is expected to spud in Q3 2022 and is targeting a large gas prospect with gross mean volumes of 177 mmboe. The well has attracted considerable attention and was recently featured on Westwood Global Energy Group’s list of “Key wells to watch in 2023”. The chance of success associated with the Velocette prospect is 30%.

The Company is working to confirm up to two additional wells for its 2024 drilling programme alongside the firm well commitment on the Lotus prospect which is expected to be drilled in H2 2024.

Kveikje and Oswig are among the five largest discoveries made in Norway in 2022 and in recognition of this excellent exploration achievement, Longboat has been awarded the Norwegian “Explorer of the Year Award” by GEO365 for 2022.

Helge Hammer, Chief Executive of Longboat, commented:
“Our immediate focus remains on progressing and monetising the exploration successes achieved to date in Norway. We are encouraged by levels of interest in the Kveijke discovery which has been re-invigorated by the recent award of the adjacent Lotus asset. As well as the high-impact Velocette well scheduled for Q3 this year, we are looking to establish up to a three well programme for 2024.

“We are delighted to have been awarded Block 2A which marks our entry into Malaysia, where our management team and partners have extensive past experience. This potentially significant opportunity has been acquired without a material initial cost obligation and with three years until a drill decision. By establishing a presence in Malaysia and building a relationship with PETRONAS we are significantly expanding Longboat’s opportunity set.”

KeyFacts Energy: Longboat Energy Malsysia country profile   l   KeyFacts Energy news: New Kid on the Block