Local oil exploration firm plunges $140M in land search

Mar 22, 2014 News

– ready to move to next level

Locally-owned exploration company, Nabi Oil and Gas Inc., says data gathered from recent activities are being analyzed. There are plans to take it to another level as soon as the results are in.
Already, the company has plunged $140M of its own funds in the project at the Mahaica/Mahaicony area where it has a lease for 2,300 square kilometers.

The Nabi oil rig.

Nabi was yesterday responding to a recent article in Stabroek News which said that activities have come to standstill.
However, the exploration firm, which is concentrating its activities on-shore, insisted that this was far from the truth.
“The reality is that Nabi Oil and Gas has completed a series of soil and boundary tests using hydrocarbon imaging. The results of those tests are in the process of being compiled, analyzed and interpreted by specialists abroad.”
That analytical process is being supervised by the Managing Director of the company, Anthony Syms, in Trinidad and Tobago.
“During such time there will be periods of non-activity at all three of the local sites. Further tests will be conducted using seismic surveying, which involves the use of reflected sound waves to produce a “CAT scan” of the earth’s subsurface and is regarded as a more detailed technique.”
According to Nabi, while preliminary studies have shown promising signs, as a business venture, it is vital for the company to be thorough in its research and analysis to determine whether the long term commitment and investment in the project will be profitable and cost effective.
“Nabi Oil and Gas is excited to be taking lead on such a bold initiative, as a local company willing to invest in a local product in Guyana’s backyard,” says Rafael Nabi, Company Secretary/Director.
It was back in November that Government announced that Nabi was exploring for oil with a mapping exercise underway on the East Coast of Demerara.
Tests have been conducted at Drill and other places in the Mahaica/Mahaicony area.
Conducting the testing and mapping, using specialised equipment, was Hydrocarbon Imaging Services Inc.
President of the Texas-based firm, Robert Clark, had explained that his firm has successfully conducted operations in Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago and several African countries.
The signs thus far are very encouraging and there is also the presence of gas (methane) as well, he added. The area being surveyed is known for oil seeps and soil outcrop also known as reefs, clear indicators of hydrocarbons being present in the subsurface of the soil.
For Engineer and Managing Director of the NABI Oil and Gas Inc, Anthony Syms, the aim is to ascertain whether they can drill to reach any deposits cost effectively and whether it is commercially viable to do so. “The cost of production must be less than the selling price or we don’t have a business,” Syms said.
Nabi Oil and Gas Inc. had secured their prospecting licence in June of 2012.
There are several licences granted for exploration of oil, but off-shore Guyana. Two wells drilled in recent years were not fruitful but there are plans by Repsol and CGX to move into drilling mode as early as next year.