West African explorer FAR Ltd. said Tuesday that an independent audit has uncovered at least 1 billion barrels of oil offshore Gambia.

FAR Ltd., an Australian company with a strong portfolio offshore West Africa, said an audit of geotechnical data show the Samo and Bambo prospects off the coast of Gambia hold combined best estimate prospective reserves of 1.1 billion barrels.

According to the data, the Sama prospect in particular holds substantial promise, with an estimated chance of success of more than 50 percent. Managing Director Cath Norman said in a statement that Gambia could be a "huge prize" if data analysis turn into real barrels.

"Given the eight successful wells drilled on the shelf to date in Senegal and into the key reservoirs in the Samo prospect, the geological chance of success for drilling this prospect is high for a frontier exploration well," she said.

The permit area offshore Gambia, which covers 1,000 square miles, is adjacent to FAR's flagship SNE discovery offshore Senegal. The initial oil discovery at the SNE field was made in 2014 and the find was quickly lauded as one of the larger discoveries in the world. The field met the minimum threshold to be considered a commercial opportunity by the third quarter of 2016.

West African countries have been at odds over their maritime borders, while officials there have been vetting their corporate options as the potential for oil evolves. In October, African Petroleum said its subsidiaries in Gambia filed requests for arbitration at an international dispute chamber to protect two of its offshore licenses.

FAR's managing director in her statement acknowledged the support of Gambian authorities.

"We trust this will be the beginning of a long and fruitful partnership," she said.

FAR's announcement came one day after Gambian authorities presented their oil and gas potential at a London energy conference. The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy said the event was meant to showcase the potential for additional licenses offshore.

Tweet

Keystone XL clears Nebraska hurdle
Washington (UPI) Nov 20, 2017
A decision spanning two U.S. presidential terms came to a head Monday when regulators in Nebraska cleared a remaining hurdle for the Keystone XL oil pipeline. Referencing long-standing concerns about the Sandhills region in Nebraska, some of which were the source of legal battles, regulators on the state Public Service Commission sided against the preferred route for Keystone XL and ins ... read more

Related Links
All About Oil and Gas News at OilGasDaily.com

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The Space Media Network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceMediaNetwork Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceMediaNetwork Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only