Europa Oil & Gas says a 1500sq km 3D seismic acquisition program on Frontier Exploration Licences (FELs) 2/13 and 3/13 in the South Porcupine basin, offshore Ireland, using the MV Polarcus Amani, has completed.
Kosmos Energy Ireland is operator and holder of an 85% interest in both licences with Europa holding the remaining 15%.
Processing of the newly acquired seismic data has started and delivery, with processed data expected in Q1 2014.
The dataset should enable detailed prospect mapping, significantly de-risking the previously identified prospectivity on both licences, says Europa.
Subject to interpretation of the data, a drilling decision could be made in Q2 2014.
This would then see drilling start in 2015/16.
FELs 2/13 and 3/13 are undrilled and cover about 1500sq km in the South Porcupine basin, in the Irish Atlantic Margin.
Europa's CEO Hugh Mackay said the companies were targeting similar
Cretaceous plays in the South Porcupine basin to those Kosmos successfully
exploited in the Atlantic Margin basins offshore West Africa.
Europa has previously identified two prospects in the Lower Cretaceous stratigraphic play: Mullen in FEL 2/13 and Kiernan in FEL 3/13, which the company estimates to have 482MM bbl gross mean un-risked indicative resources and 1,612Billion boe respectively.
Under the terms of a farm-in agreement, Kosmos will fully fund the costs of the 3D seismic program, and has paid 85% of the pre-farm-in costs incurred by Europa.
Kosmos will also pay 100% costs on the first exploration well on each FEL.