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Baar, Switzerland, 10 January, 2008 – Manas Petroleum Corporation announced today in a press release the results of a Resource Evaluation prepared by Gustavson Associates LLC regarding Manas Petroleum’s blocks A, B,D and E in Albania.
The Report considers the licenses 8 primary and recognized prospects identified from approximately 4,000 kilometers of seismic shot by AlbPetrol, Shell, and Coparex on the concession position.
Gustavson assigns 2.987 billion barrels with 3.014 trillion cubic feet of associated gas as the P50 prospective oil resources in its oil with associated gas case. Gustavson notes that because of the depth it is possible that the prospects will hold natural gas. In its oil with a gas cap case Gustavson calculates the prospective resources to total 1.4 billion barrels of light oil and 15 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Gustavson estimates that in the event only gas is present the P50 prospective resource is 28 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
Gustavson examined the Manas Albanian license position which consists of Blocks A, B, D & E with a total of approximately 780,000 gross acres located along the NW-SE trending fold belt of northwestern Albania. The plays include potential conventional exploration targets involving sub-thrust hydrocarbon accumulations in fractured carbonates. Gustavson’s assessment is limited to the potential undiscovered oil and gas resources underlying the company’s licenses.
The report notes that:
“The primary exploration targets are sub-thrust fractured carbonate reservoirs similar to those discovered in the 1990’s in the Apennines of Italy. During the same time Shell and Coparex discovered a deep under-thrust structure within the blocks that, by their calculations, has the potential to contain a combined 820 million barrels (MMBO) recoverable of oil.”
It states: “Manas has this opportunity because Shell and Coparex suspended all exploration activity and abandoned the blocks in reaction to the extreme unrest in Albania and the conflict in neighboring Kosovo allowing Manas to later acquire these superbly defined, giant, virtually drill ready prospects.”
In the Gustavson reports closing statement in a discussion regarding the risks and probability of success Gustavson Associates states: “The probability of success for a wildcat well in a structurally complex area such as this is relatively high due to the fact that it is in a structurally favorable area, there exists a proven hydrocarbon source and analogous production exists only 20 to 30 kilometers away.”
Manas is currently analyzing the Gustavson report and expects to release further details in approximately three weeks. The company is currently preparing a work program which consists of reprocessing seismic, seismic acquisition and processing to be followed by drilling.
ECIKS / Manas Petroleum Corporation press release