An exploration unit of the Ayala group can proceed with the new phase of its petroleum discovery in Palawan after the Department of Energy (DoE) signed off on its proposed appraisal period activities and budget.
The department approved the $1.70-million budget of Palawan 55 Exploration & Production Corp., a subsidiary of listed ACE Enexor, Inc., for its appraisal work, including a commitment to drill at least one oil well by 2022.
Once the DoE authorizes the company to proceed with the drilling, it expects a budget proposal from the company to follow, the Ayala-led firm told the stock exchange, Friday.
To recall, the deep-water block project led by Palawan55, the operator of DoE’s Service Contract 55, entered the appraisal period on April 26 following its discovery report on the Hawkeye-1 well within the area.
After finding a “significant” volume of movable natural gas from the well, the DoE classified the project as a non-associated gas discovery.
The 9,580-feet well was first drilled in 2015 when Australia-based exploration firm Otto Energy, Ltd. still operated the service contract.
The ACE Enexor unit has raised its stake in SC 55 to 75% after a co-contractor, Singaporean firm Century Red Pte. Ltd., transferred its 37.5% interest share to the company after exiting from the project. Pryce Gases, Inc. owns the remaining interest.
On Friday, shares in ACE Enexor went up 3.70% to close at P5.60 apiece. — Adam J. Ang
