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Proactive weekly oil and gas news - IGas Energy, Sound Energy, Providence Resources and more...

Last updated: 16:20 07 Oct 2016 EDT, First published: 04:01 08 Oct 2016 EDT

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A big week for the UK’s nascent shale gas industry.

Communities secretary Sajid Javid overturned a planning decision made by Lancashire County Council and  privately-owned shale firm Cuadrilla has a green-light to test the potentially large gas resources in the Blackpool and Fylde area.

Shares in IGas Energy Plc (LON:IGAS) gained more than a third at one point on Thursday.

Cuadrilla’s proposal to drill and frack four horizontal wells from a single site was rejected by Lancashire County Council last year, against the recommendation of its own planning officer.

Significantly for IGas it came less than 24 hours after a decision on one of its shale projects was deferred by Nottinghamshire County Council following an eleventh hour legal appeal by conservationists – due to alleged threats to wildlife, including a rare type of owl and a form of lichen.

Elsewhere this week, TomCo Energy Plc’s (LON:TOM) may commit to a bigger palm oil business, as it mulls scrapping the planned phasing of the new Sierra Leone venture.

The company told investors it may go straight to a 2 tonne per hour plant, rather than start with a 1tph starter operation.

In a stock market statement TomCo said talks with potential debt providers are continuing, and once funding has been secured it expects project start may take six to nine months.

It has start purchasing some long lead items from its current cash resources, including a boiler unit at a cost of US$27,500.

In other news, Cluff Natural Resources Plc (LON:CLNR) has dropped out of a venture for the Skerryvore exploration prospect in the Moray Firth area of the North Sea, but could go back for the assets directly.

The AIM quoted group secured an option to acquire interests in three oil and gas leases in May, through an arrangement with Verus Petroleum.

Cluff had access to Skerryvore as well as the Fynn and Penny prospects, through the option deal.

It had been anticipated that the UK petroleum regulator, the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA), would extend lease beyond December 31 2016. The OGA won’t give the operator more time for Skerryvore, however, and as such Cluff won’t exercise its option.

Speakibg of the North Sea, Jersey Oil & Gas PLC (LON:JOG) rocketed by 45% this week as it completed the farm-out of two  North Sea blocks to Statoil.

The Norwegian giant is to take a 70% working interest in the UK Seaward Licence P.2170 (Blocks 20/5b and 21/1d) in the UK Central North Sea.

Jersey Oil will receive US$540,000 with the rest of a US$1.2mln cash consideration earmarked for its partners in the initial development.

Providence Resources PLC (LON:PVR) is coming back into focus for investors, according to Cantor Fitzgerald, with analyst Sam Wahab highlighting that it had transformed its balance sheet.

The company, which released interims this week, brought in £53mln (US$73.8mln) of new capital this summer and Wahab reckons it could be a precursor to long-awaited deal news for Providence.

“Providence has been involved in long-term farm out discussions with regards to its flagship Barryroe field for a number of years, and the absence of any conclusion has weighed heavily on the company’s share price,” the analyst said in a note.

“Nevertheless, with a significant boost to its capital position, an increase in operational activity offshore Ireland, and a varied portfolio of assets, we believe Providence is in a significantly stronger negotiating position.”

Wahab added: “we expect the market’s interest to return to PVR and indeed offshore Ireland as a hydrocarbon province."

And it emerged Sound Energy PLC (LON:SOU) has enjoyed further success in Morocco following the completion of its second gas well.

The company said it had encountered 28-metres of net pay, roughly in line with what it observed with its first well on the Tendara licence, TE-6.

TE-7 was drilled horizontally to increase the surface area contact with the productive TAGI sandstone. This, it believes, will “significantly increase” the well flow rate.

Sound is now preparing for a 70-day flow test, which will “confirm production sustainability and to aid comprehensive field development planning”.

TE-7 was drilled to around 3,500 metres that included a 700-metre horizontal section.

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