CBM Asia Announces Plan for Commercializing Its 705 Bcf Resource at
Kutai West PSC
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Apr 4, 2014) - CBM
Asia Development Corp. ("CBM Asia" or the "Company")
(TSX-VENTURE:TCF)(OTCBB:CBMDF)(FRANKFURT:IY2) announces plans for
the Kutai West PSC development.
CBM Asia's primary goal for 2014 is to commercialize the Kutai
West Production Sharing Contract (PSC) in East Kalimantan,
Indonesia, located near the Bontang LNG export facility. Achieving
early-stage commercial production will help unlock the value of
this asset, which is situated close to high-priced Asian gas
markets.
705 Bcf Near Bontang
LNG Facility. CBM Asia holds an 18% working interest in the
Kutai West PSC, representing 705 Bcf of recoverable prospective
resources net to CBM Asia from the total 3.9 Tcf estimated by an
independent audit conducted in 2013 by Netherland, Sewell &
Associates, Inc.1 Kutai West is regarded as one of the best and
commercially most advanced of the more than 50 awarded CBM blocks
in Indonesia.
Kutai West is adjacent to the Sanga-Sanga PSC, where VICO (BP
and partners) is commercially producing and selling CBM for power
generation and gas to the nearby Bontang LNG facility. As VICO
notes: "This is the first time in Indonesia that any CBM
facilities have produced and sold gas and represents a major
milestone in the exploration of CBM potential."
Kutai West will produce from the same coal seams as at
Sanga-Sanga. To date, the Company and its partners have drilled
four CBM test wells on the block, verifying thick coal seams
(average 105 ft) with high gas content (average 300 ft3/ton; dry,
ash-free basis) and gas saturation (close to 100%), as well as 5-mD
permeability. The KWCBM-01 well is currently being dewatered,
venting produced gas from the flare stack, which is a key first
step towards larger scale production.
Management's main focus this year is to initiate commercial gas
production at Kutai West with a 5-well pilot, followed by a larger
commercial scale 25-well development (total 30 wells). To this end
we have reached consensus with our partners to sell the produced
gas to locally installed gas engine power generation units selling
power into the PLN grid and later to feed gas into the gas-short
Bontang LNG export network. Anticipated gas prices are USD8/Mcf or
higher. Bontang exports LNG to Japan and other Asian rim importers,
which are critically short of natural gas.
Phase 1: Under Phase 1 four new CBM wells will be drilled near
the existing KW-CBM01, forming an effective dewatering pilot on
tight 40-acre spacing to accelerate gas production and demonstrate
commerciality. Produced gas estimated at 2.0-2.5 MMcfd (gross)
would be sold to a power station developer/operator and PLN for
on-site power generation at about US$8/Mcf. The government of
Indonesia strongly supports such commercialization prior to formal
Plan of Development (POD) approval. Total capex for Phase 1 is
estimated at US$7.16 million, comprising four wells at US$1.46
million/well cost (drilling & completion, water management, and
surface facilities) plus US$1.32 million in engineering and
overhead costs. An additional $200,000 would be required for field
operating expenses during the first year. CBM Asia's share of the
Phase 1 costs is estimated at US$2.15 million.
The 10-MW power station would employ an array of 1- to 5-MW
reciprocating engines; hundreds of such installations already are
in operation throughout Indonesia. The power station would be
independently owned and operated, with no capital required from CBM
Asia. Drilling and completing the wells would require about two
months, plus an additional four months to install and commission
the power plant. An updated engineering audit would be conducted to
certify proved and probable reserves, with an excellent chance of
qualifying the project for low-cost Phase 2 project financing.
Phase 2: Following success in Phase 1 and the approval of the
Phase 2 POD, CBM Asia and its partners would utilize two rigs to
drill an additional 25 wells (30 total) over a 7-month period. The
increased production initially would supply the power station.
Pending successful conclusion of a sales agreement, a 12-inch,
20-km pipeline would be constructed to the Badak compressor station
by a third party under BOO basis and funded via an estimated
$0.50/Mcf transport tariff. Total capex for phase 2 is estimated at
US$36.3 million with CBM Asia's share of costs estimated at US$8.0
million. Production estimated at 12.5 MMcfd (gross) would be sold
into the Bontang LNG export network at approximately US$8/Mcf or
more. Note that Bontang is the world's second largest LNG plant
(22.5 mtpa), shipping primarily to Japan, but local conventional
gas supplies are in decline and the facility is currently operating
at less than 60% of capacity.
"The Kutai West and Sekayu PSC's both have substantial
engineered resources for commercialization, but Kutai West is most
viable for near-term commercial development" noted President
and CEO Charles Bloomquist. "We are focusing our efforts on
achieving commercial production and gas sales at the block as soon
as possible, likely before the end of 2014. We estimate that with
completion of the Phase 2 development CBM Asia will be operational
cash flow positive. Jointly with its partners the Company has
developed a technical plan and budget for the Kutai West commercial
development and will post details in a new presentation on its
website in the coming days."
ABOUT CBM ASIA DEVELOPMENT CORP.
CBM Asia Development Corp. is a Canadian-based unconventional
gas company with significant coalbed methane ("CBM") exploration
and development opportunities in Indonesia. The Company holds
various participating interests in five production sharing
contracts (each a "PSC") for CBM in Indonesia. Indonesia has one of
the largest CBM resources in the world with a potential 453
trillion feet3 in-place, more than double the country's natural gas
reserves (Stevens and Hadiyanto, 2004). Since 2008 a total of 54
CBM PSCs have been granted by the Government of Indonesia,
representing exploration commitments of well over US$100 million
during the next 3 years. In addition to CBM Asia, other companies
active in CBM exploration in Indonesia include BP, Dart Energy,
ENI, Medco, Santos, and TOTAL. BP, ENI, and the Indonesian
government have confirmed that commercial CBM production started in
March 2011 from the Sanga-Sanga PSC and is being exported from the
Bontang LNG facility. The Company trades on the TSX Venture
Exchange under the symbol "TCF". www.cbmasia.ca
1 NI 51-101 compliant resource audit conducted by NSAI |
ON BEHALF OF CBM ASIA DEVELOPMENT CORP.
Scott H. Stevens, Chairman
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX
Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release.
This news release contains forward-looking statements, which
relate to future events or future performance and reflect
management's current expectations and assumptions. Such
forward-looking statements reflect management's current beliefs and
are based on assumptions made by and information currently
available to the Company. Readers are cautioned that these forward
looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, and are
subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to
differ materially from those expected. The economics of exploring,
developing and operating resource properties are affected by many
factors including, but not limited to, the cost of exploration and
development operations, conclusions of economic evaluations,
unexpected formations or pressures, premature declines in reserves,
potential environmental damage, blow‐outs, fires, variations in the
amount and saturation of CBM contained in individual coal seams and
the rate of production therefrom, fluctuations in gas prices and
the availability of capital. There are no assurances that the
Company's work programs will result in the discovery of
commercially viable or economically producible properties or that
the Company will be successful in completing the Offering in whole
or in part. Gas in place estimates referred to in this news release
are not NI 51-101 compliant and do not represent "discovered
petroleum initially-in-place" within the meaning of the
Canadian Oil & Gas Evaluation Handbook (COGE Handbook). The
term "discovered petroleum initially-in-place" is
equivalent to discovered resources, and is defined in the COGE
Handbook to mean that quantity of petroleum that is estimated, as
of a given date, to be contained in known accumulations prior to
production. There are no assurances that any portion of the
estimated gas in place resources referred to herein will be
discovered. Furthermore, such estimates make no allowance for the
recovery of the gas which will depend on, among other things, the
reservoir characteristics encountered and future economic
conditions. All of the forward-looking statements made in this news
release are qualified by these cautionary statements and those made
in our Canadian continuous disclosure filings available on SEDAR at
www.sedar.com including our December 31, 2012 year end annual
MD&A dated April 24, 2013 and June 30, 2013 interim MD&A
dated August 20, 2013. These forward-looking statements are made as
of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation
to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances
save as required under applicable securities legislation.
THIS NEWS RELEASE, REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE CANADIAN LAWS, IS NOT
FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWS SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE
UNITED STATES, AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER TO SELL SECURITIES
AND THE COMPANY IS NOT SOLICITING AN OFFER TO BUY THE SECURITIES
DESCRIBED HEREIN. THESE SECURITIES HAVE NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER
THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED, OR ANY STATE
SECURITIES LAWS, AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD IN THE UNITED
STATES OR TO U.S. PERSONS UNLESS REGISTERED OR EXEMPT
THEREFROM.
CBM Asia Development Corp.,Charles
Bloomquist604.684.2340TF.866.504.4755604.684.2474corpcom@cbmasia.cawww.cbmasia.caInvestor
Relations ContactMicro Cap et al1 877 642
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