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TAG Oil Developing Oil and Gas Exploration Block in New Zealand to Expand Taranaki Interests
TAG Oil Developing Oil and Gas Exploration Block in New Zealand to Expand Taranaki Interests
About this update from Apex Resources Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n\n\nDec. 10, 2009 (Canada NewsWire Group) -- VANCOUVER, Dec. 10 /CNW/ -- New Zealand oil and gas producer TAG Oil Ltd. (TSX-V: TAO) announced today that pursuant to an agreement between TAG and the Receivers for Austral Pacific Energy, the Company has completed the acquisition of the remaining 66.67% interest in Petroleum Exploration Permit 38748 (the \"Winchester Permit\") located in the heart of the onshore Taranaki Basin discovery fairway.TAG now has 100% control over this 7,910-acre permit, which immediately offsets a number of Taranaki oil and gas fields including TAG's 100%-owned Cheal oil and gas discovery to the south. The Winchester Permit 38748 area already contains six drill-ready prospects identified on 3-D seismic, and numerous leads targeting the relatively shallow Mt. Messenger formation. TAG plans to commence drilling operations in the permit area in 2010.An \"Exceptional Opportunity for TAG\"This transaction coincides with sharply increasing interest in New Zealand's petroleum sector by foreign investors, fuelled by high-profit oil discoveries. \"This high-graded exploration acreage is an exceptional opportunity for TAG,\" said Garth Johnson, TAG Oil Chief Executive Officer. \"The area is not only complimentary to TAG's Taranaki operations, it is strategic in terms of providing the opportunity to grow near-term production with lower-risk, yet high-impact exploration in a proven discovery fairway,\" Johnson added.The target in the Winchester Permit 38748 is light oil in the Mt. Messenger formation consistent with a number of discoveries in the immediate area. TAG Oil acquired a proprietary merged 3-D data set covering the majority of the Winchester permit, which has identified drillable prospects and numerous leads. In the event of discovery, Taranaki oil is readily sold at a premium to West Texas Intermediate, primarily to Australia, Japan and Korea; gas discoveries can easily be tied into existing underutilized infrastructure and sold into a robust local market.Prolific Taranaki Discoveries Establish Winchester As a ProspectiveProducerThe Taranaki Basin represents an ideal growth area for TAG. Not only is political risk at a minimum, the Taranaki is an underexplored emerging oil, gas and condensate province located on the North Island of New Zealand, and proving to be prolific with profitable discoveries. \...