VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - April 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.
Contact Information:
Charles Bloomquist
604.684.2340
TF.866.504.4755
604.684.2474 (FAX)
corpcom@cbmasia.ca
www.cbmasia.ca
Investor Relations Contact
Micro Cap et al
1 877 642 7622
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