Nov 11

San Leon Energy plc Announces Completion of Acquisition of Realm Energy International Corporation

By Curve Realm Energy No Comments »

 

LONDON, Nov. 11, 2011 /CNW/ – San Leon Energy plc (“San Leon“) (AIM:SLE) is pleased to announce that the previously announced acquisition of all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Realm Energy International Corporation (“Realm Energy“) (TSX-V:RLM) by San Leon pursuant to a plan of arrangement (the “Arrangement“) has been completed.

Under the terms of the Arrangement, shareholders of Realm Energy received for each Realm Energy share held, at their election and subject to pro-ration:

(a) C$1.30 in cash;
(b) 3.3 ordinary shares in the capital of San Leon (each, a “San Leon Share“) or 3.3 exchangeable shares (each, an “Exchangeable Share“) in the capital of an indirect Canadian subsidiary of San Leon (“Exchangeco“) together with the associated ancillary rights; or
(c) a combination thereof;

subject to a maximum of C$17.7 million in cash (subject to adjustment) being paid to Realm Energy shareholders in the aggregate, in exchange for the aggregate number of Realm Energy shares in respect of which such an election is made. As a result of certain Realm Energy shareholders exercising rights of dissent under Canadian law, the cash available was adjusted to a maximum of approximately C$14.0 million.

Realm Energy shareholders elected to receive cash greater than the maximum amount of cash available to Realm Energy shareholders pursuant to the Arrangement.  Accordingly, as a result of pro-rationing and the exercise of rights of dissent by certain Realm Energy shareholders, Realm Energy shareholders who elected cash will receive approximately 12.68% of the amount of cash they elected to receive.  In addition to the cash consideration paid to Realm Energy shareholders, San Leon issued 284,084,336 San Leon Shares and Exchangeco issued 41,292,848 Exchangeable Shares to Realm Energy shareholders under the Arrangement.  Realm Energy’s shares were delisted from the TSX Venture Exchange effective at the close of business on November 10, 2011.

Due to an incompatibility between the current Irish legal requirements in relation to San Leon Shares and certain Canadian securities laws, neither the San Leon Shares nor the Exchangeable Shares could be made eligible for CDS deposit at this time.  San Leon is currently working with its advisors to determine the most efficient option to rectify the issue and have the securities made eligible for CDS deposit.  As a result, each Realm Energy shareholder that submits a properly completed Letter of Transmittal will be receiving a physical certificate for its San Leon Shares or Exchangeable Shares, as applicable.  Those Realm Energy shareholders that held their interest in a CDS position and are non-objecting beneficial holders will also be receiving physical certificates representing their interest in San Leon Shares or Exchangeable Shares, as applicable.  Realm Energy shareholders that are objecting beneficial holders may not directly receive physical share certificates as it is anticipated that “global certificates” will be issued to each CDS participant representing the aggregated position held by such CDS participant.  It is anticipated that each of the CDS participants will then breakdown its aggregated position internally and may requisition physical certificates for each objecting beneficial holder.  It is anticipated that for those registered Realm Energy shareholders who have already submitted a properly completed Letter of Transmittal, the physical certificates for San Leon Shares will be mailed out by the Dublin office of Computershare Investor Services Inc. (“Computershare Ireland“), in its capacity as registrar and transfer agent for San Leon, by Wednesday, November 16, 2011.  Likewise, for those registered Realm Energy shareholders who have already submitted a properly completed Letter of Transmittal, it is anticipated the physical certificates for the Exchangeable Shares will be mailed out by the Vancouver office of Computershare Investor Services Inc., in its capacity as registrar and transfer agent for Exchangeco, within the same time period.  For those registered Realm Energy shareholders who have not yet submitted a properly completed Letter of Transmittal, but who plan to do so in the future and those non-objecting beneficial holders holding their interest in the CDS position, the time period for the issuance and mailing of physical certificates representing San Leon Shares and Exchangeable Shares is anticipated to be approximately ten business days after receipt by Computershare Trust Company of Canada of the applicable Letter of Transmittal and CDS participants list.

Neither the San Leon Shares nor the Exchangeable Shares are listed on a stock exchange in Canada.  In connection with the consideration of its options regarding the CDS eligibility of the San Leon Shares, San Leon is exploring the possibility of seeking a listing on a Canadian exchange for the San Leon Shares.  There is no intention to seek a listing in any jurisdiction for the Exchangeable Shares.  Currently, San Leon Shares are admitted to trading on London’s Alternative Investment Market (“AIM“) under the symbol “SLE”.  Realm Energy shareholders who desire to trade San Leon Shares they will receive pursuant to the Arrangement in on-market transactions on AIM will need to contact a broker who can effect trades in the CREST system, which is the securities settlement system used by companies traded on AIM.  To the extent that Realm Energy shareholders wish to transfer their San Leon Shares outside of the CREST system they will need to contact Computershare Ireland to effect such a transfer.  A purchaser involved in a transfer of San Leon Shares outside of the CREST system will be required to provide evidence that Irish stamp duty has been paid on such a transfer, or alternatively, that Irish stamp duty is not applicable to such transfer.  It is anticipated that this requirement may cause significant delays in the registration of the transfer.  More detailed information regarding Irish stamp duty can be found in the information circular of Realm Energy dated October 5, 2011 (the “Circular“) under the heading “Tax Considerations to Realm Shareholders“.

As previously disclosed in the Circular, a Realm Energy shareholder wishing to file a joint tax election under section 85 of the Income Tax Act (Canada) or a QEF Election (as such term is defined in the Circular) pursuant to the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986 should consult its tax advisor.  Information concerning each of these filings will be included in the joint tax election package and the 2011 PFIC Annual Information Form that will be made available on San Leon’s website at www.sanleonenergy.com

To obtain copies of the agreements governing the exchange of Exchangeable Shares into San Leon Shares, holders of Exchangeable Shares should visit San Leon’s profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com to obtain copies of the Support Agreement and the Exchange Trust Agreement (as such terms are defined in the Circular).

About San Leon

San Leon is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company listed on AIM (ticker symbol: SLE). San Leon holds exploration assets in Poland, Morocco, Albania, Ireland, Italy, Spain and Germany and is in the process of acquiring additional petroleum and natural gas rights in other European basins. San Leon’s focus is on both shale and conventional exploration across its portfolio.

Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws.  The use of any of the words “expect”, “anticipate”, “may”, “will”, “should”, “believe”, and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking information or statements.  This press release contains forward-looking statements and information concerning the eligibility for deposit into CDS, the anticipated timing for issuance of physical certificates representing San Leon Shares and Exchangeable Shares and the potential delays involved in trading San Leon Shares outside the CREST system.. San Leon has provided these statements in reliance on certain assumptions that they believe are reasonable at this time, but there can be no assurance that such statements will be correct.. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this press release concerning these statements. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive.  The forward-looking statements and information contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and San Leon undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws.

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Nov 01

Realm Energy International Corporation and San Leon Energy plc Announce Realm Energy Shareholder Approval of Plan of Arrangement

By Curve Realm Energy No Comments »

 

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM and WHITE ROCK, BRITISH COLUMBIA–(Marketwire – Nov. 2, 2011) - Realm Energy International Corporation (TSX VENTURE:RLM) and San Leon Energy plc (AIM:SLE) -

NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION OR RELEASE IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, RUSSIA, SOUTH AFRICA OR JAPAN

Realm Energy International Corporation (“Realm Energy“) (TSX VENTURE:RLM) and San Leon Energy plc (“San Leon“) (AIM:SLE) are pleased to announce that Realm Energy shareholders have approved the previously announced acquisition of Realm Energy by San Leon pursuant to a plan of arrangement (the “Arrangement“).

At the special meeting of holders of common shares of Realm Energy held on November 1, 2011, shareholders representing 99.52% of the Realm Energy common shares voted at such meeting voted in favour of the resolution to approve the Arrangement. Approval of the Arrangement required the affirmative vote of holders of two-thirds of the shares of Realm Energy voted at such meeting. Realm Energy will seek final approval of the Arrangement from the Supreme Court of British Columbia on the morning of November 2, 2011. Closing of the Arrangement is expected to occur on or about November 3, 2011.

About Realm Energy

Realm Energy is a Canadian domiciled global energy company focused on driving the exploration and development of major shale plays throughout Europe and emerging countries. Realm Energy presently has projects in Poland, Spain and Germany and is in the process of acquiring additional petroleum and natural gas rights in other European basins. Realm Energy is committed to leveraging the most advanced shale technology to bring these resources into production.

On August 26, 2011, Realm Energy announced it had reached an agreement with San Leon whereby San Leon will acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Realm Energy pursuant to the Arrangement. Further information, with respect to the Arrangement is available in Realm Energy’s Information Circular dated October 5, 2011, which can be viewed at www.sedar.com.

About San Leon

San Leon is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company listed on London’s Alternative Investment Market (ticker symbol: SLE). The company holds exploration assets in Poland, Morocco, Albania, Ireland, and Italy. San Leon’s focus is on both shale and conventional exploration across its portfolio.

Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. The use of any of the words “expect”, “anticipate”, “may”, “will”, “should”, “believe”, and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking information or statements. This press release contains forward-looking statements and information concerning the anticipated completion of the proposed Arrangement and the anticipated timing for completion of the Arrangement. Realm Energy has provided these anticipated times in reliance on certain assumptions that they believe are reasonable at this time, including assumptions as to the timing of court approvals and the time necessary to satisfy the conditions to the closing of the Arrangement. These dates may change for a number of reasons, including unforeseen delays, inability to secure necessary regulatory or court approvals in the time assumed or the need for additional time to satisfy the conditions to the completion of the Arrangement. There can be no assurance that the Arrangement will be completed as proposed or at all. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this press release concerning these times. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. The forward-looking statements and information contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and neither Realm Energy or San Leon undertakes any obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

 

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Oct 13

Realm Energy International Shareholders Should Receive Mailout Soon

By Curve Realm Energy No Comments »

 

Realm Energy International has announced it has mailed out the information circular to its shareholders, with respect to the details of the proposed acquisition of Realm Energy, by San Leon Energy Plc.

You can read details of the release by clicking on the link below.

News from Realm Energy International Corporation

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Aug 25

Shale Gas: A Focus on Positive

By Curve natural gas in Europe, Poland No Comments »

 

There’s a big difference between developing conventional oil and gas and unconventionals, according to James Elston, Director of Palladian Energy Advisory, former CEO of Realm Energy International - this posting from Natural Gas for Europe follows the Wall Street Journal post earlier this week, about the labour force in Poland.

“The great contrast with conventional O&G exploration,” he explained, “is in a general O&G field you can drill a few wells and you can produce out of those wells with no intervention for a very lengthy period and therefore the returns can be very high, correspondingly the investment level is very low. And once the rig has come and gone, that is it really for the field.

“So there’s not a great deal of investment that goes into a local area – you have people staying in hotels for the couple of months it might take to drill a well, and another couple of months for the surface facilities, and then they go.”

He said things were quite a bit different at unconventional drilling sites, where personnel and affluence were around to stay. In his recent presentation at one of Europe’s premier energy conferences, Flame, Mr. Elston highlighted the associated benefits of developing unconventional gas.

“The difference really is that with shale oil and gas, you have to drill a great deal of wells and you have to do that continually over decades and the effect that has is really continual injection of money through the value chain in various ways,” he said.

According to Elston, security of supply is one very likely benefit; he said he was a bit skeptical about lower gas prices from unconventionals development.

Still, he continued by listing the benefits. Jobs, for one.

“Certainly in America, many hundreds of thousands of jobs are generated – probably even millions of them are generated by the shale gas phenomenon. And it’s not just for a year or two; this is a generational thing. This lasts and will last decades, so you’re going to have people at various levels within the shale gas business around the world really working their entire lives in particular regions, in support of the value chain.”

He continued: “You have substantial, well-paid, generational job opportunities – this isn’t just some quick bubble that comes and goes and you have to make your money on it while you can, like in a property boom. This is substantial, well-paid generational opportunities in rural areas, which means you don’t need to go to a city to earn a good living.”

Royalty revenues, he said, were also a great windfall.

“In America these go to the landowners, while in Europe all minerals are owned by the government, so royalties go to the government at the local or say state level as in Germany,” he explained.

“In France they have an interesting thing where royalties are split within various different levels of governments and you have the situation, oddly enough in the Paris basin, where you have local areas that don’t have property taxes, or that are effectively minimized off the royalties by one or two oil wells.

“So, royalties can be real, be they going to the local or national levels, and of course they’re paid from day one of production,” said Elston.

Corporate tax revenues, according to him, were generated from producers, service companies and suppliers developing a shale play.

“And perhaps even more importantly,” he said, “given the very high level of this taxation in Europe, payroll taxes – your personal taxes and, more importantly, the national insurance contributions, social security, which you don’t see on your payslip because they’re paid by your employer. These numbers are quite enormous.

“And as you can imagine you’ve got generational job opportunities: people are employed for their entire careers and they’re paying very substantial payroll taxes – this is a tremendous revenue stream for governments, even ignoring the tax take directly from oil and gas.”

Elston said there were also multiplier effects on the rest of the economy. He cited studies done on the Fort Worth region for the Barnett shale, which showed benefits, multiplier effects on the economy, and how many people were employed from drilling operations. “There are multiplier effects from massive investment going into a local region that benefit most everybody.”

“And I think perhaps last of all there are gains for pensions funds and other investors in the value chain investing in little companies like Realm, big companies like Exxon, or the many many service companies that come and work on the businesses: civil engineering contractors doing things to do with preparing well pads, or digging trenches for pipelines. There’s just a large amount of investment going in where profits can be made and investors can be rewarded.”

He contended that governments at local and national levels would see substantial cash flows from this business, which would help maintain living standards in Europe.

Elston said developing unconventionals could have a profound effect upon rural areas within Europe.

“If you look at the Lower Saxony area in Germany, its finances could do with an injection of money,” he offered as an example. “Royalties in Germany go to the state, so it really helps with employment and investment. It’s nice to have something happening in the countryside beyond farming, alternative choices of employment.

He added: “And these are well paid jobs; if you work in the onshore business in Europe, you make a lot of money.”

Initially, he said he thought a fair number of teams of people would be moving over from North America in terms of fracking, which wasn’t commonly available in Europe.

“Given the cost of doing that, Halliburton, Schlumberger, Weatherford will be very keen to train local people in quantity from day one, and they’ll just take people from the technical schools and universities, or perhaps Poles who’ve worked in Britain doing various things. They’ll train them up over a period of years and the intention will be to have localized workforces in all plays very quickly, as it’s more cost effective as well as being more politically acceptable than having a lot of people moving in form North America,” explained Elston.

Considering Poland was likely to be first place on the continent where shale gas was developed, perhaps Poles would comprise the first indigenous unconventionals workforce in Europe, he surmised. Having experienced the huge Polish workforce in the UK, he said no one would underestimate the ingenuity, rapid learning and work ethic of Poles, who might eventually be found working in France’s unconventional plays.

Source: Natural Gas for Europe

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Apr 11

Realm Energy Builds Technical Advisory Board

By Curve Realm, Realm Energy No Comments »

Realm Energy International Corporation (“Realm Energy” or the “Company”) (TSX-V:RLM) (www.realmenergy.ca) is pleased to announce two distinguished additions to its Technical Advisory Board; Dr. A. Pedro H. van Meurs  and Mr. Jay Park, Q.C.

DR. PEDRO VAN MEURS, LEADING PETROLEUM ECONOMIST
Dr. A. Pedro H. van Meurs has provided petroleum consulting services for 34 years in or with respect to 70 countries around the world. He has been involved in developing oil and gas legislation and regulations for dozens of these countries.

Dr. van Meurs has also been a key economic advisor on major projects, such as the Alaska Pipeline Project and Newfoundland’s offshore activities.  He has also advised corporations, such as China’s CNOOC, and is currently Chief Economic Advisor to the Kuwait Oil Company with regard to determining fiscal terms for the North Kuwait oil fields.

Dr. van Meurs has published two books on petroleum economics and publishes the overviews “World Fiscal Systems for Oil” and “World Fiscal Systems for Gas”.  Additionally, Dr. van Meurs facilitates the course, World Fiscal Systems for Oil and Gas, on an open access basis in London, UK, and on an in-house basis for governments and corporations.

MR. JAY PARK, INTERNATIONAL OIL & GAS LAW
Mr. Jay Park, Q.C., is a Partner and Chair of the Global Resources Practice Group with Macleod Dixon LLP.

During his career, Mr. Park has advised oil & gas companies, NOC’s and governments in over forty-five countries.  Advising states and state oil companies regarding the creation or amendment of petroleum regimes (comprising petroleum laws, petroleum regulations and petroleum contracts) has been one of Mr. Park’s focus areas.  He has assisted twelve states whose oil reserves represent 49% of the world total, and whose gas reserves represent 35% of the world total.

In 2006 and 2007, Mr. Park was recognized by the independent research partner of the International Bar Association as the world’s leading oil & gas lawyer.  He also instructs the “International Petroleum Transactions” course at the Faculty of Law, University of Calgary, and instructs private training programs on oil & gas regimes semi-annually in London and Houston.

About Realm Energy
Realm Energy International Corporation is a Canadian domiciled global energy company focused on driving the exploration and development of major shale plays throughout Europe and emerging countries. The Company presently has projects in Poland and Germany and is in the process of acquiring additional petroleum and natural gas rights in other European basins which have been identified as high potential.  Realm Energy is committed to leveraging the most advanced shale technology to bring these resources into production.  Visit Realm Energy’s website at www.realmenergy.ca.

REALM ENERGY INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION
Craig Steinke
Chairman & CEO

Media Contact:  Brian Paterson, Curve Communications
T: 604.684.3170 ext. 102 / C: 778.319.4165 / brian@curvecommunications.com

Investor Relations:  Keir Reynolds, Contact Financial
T: 604.689.7422 / keir@contactfinancial.com

Corporate Enquiries:  Kevin Rathbun, Chief Financial Officer
T: 604.637.4974 ext. 33 / info@realmenergy.ca

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Jan 20

Realm Discussed at TheEnergyReport.com

By Curve Realm Energy No Comments »

In an interview published today between The Energy Report and James West, author of the resource investment bulletin, The Midas Letter, the topic of shale gas plays was addressed, with Realm Energy featuring prominently in the conversation.

In an excerpt from the interview:

TER: So you have some promising companies in [the oil and gas] sector?

JW: Oh yes, definitely. One that we talked about in the September Midas Letter when it was trading at $0.30 was Realm Energy International Corp. (TSX:RLM), which has large landholdings in Poland. Realm has seen its share price soar from that $0.30 to current levels of around $1.43, which was a 400% win for our subscribers—and the company is still in its early days.

They’re sitting on a 2,500 sq. km. land position there, which is huge, and obviously Realm itself isn’t going to have the access to capital necessary to develop anything that shapes up there, but with the success recently of other companies operating in the area, Realm’s land position becomes more and more valuable without their lifting a finger to do any exploration on their own. It’s the ultimate example of being in the right place at the right time.

Visit The Energy Report to read the full interview.

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Jan 13

Realm Energy Powers Ahead in Poland

By Curve Realm, Realm Energy No Comments »

Midas subscribers who bought Realm Energy (TSX.V:RLM) on the advice of our September newsletter have been celebrating lately, as the junior stock they bought at $0.30 powered through $1.50 Thursday for a %400 win.

Realm Energy’s great ambition is to become a shale gas mega play in Eastern Europe – specifically, Poland.

On June 14, 2010, the company was awarded concessions in Poland which cover a gross area of 635,541 acres (2,572 square kilometres) and net 464,918 acres (1,881 square kilometres). One concession, Gniew, is held 100 per cent by the company (294,296 acres or 1,191 square kilometres), and the other two concessions, Llawa and Wegrow, are held 50 per cent by the company and 50 per cent by Source Energy Partners, a Denver-based private shale company.

All of the concessions in Poland target natural gas in Silurian, Ordovician and Cambrian shales. The Silurian shales across the license areas are potentially hundreds of metres thick and range in drilling depth from 2,000 to 3,500 meters. The total organic carbon, measured by the Polish Geological Institute, ranges from 1 per cent to 17 per cent, with thermal maturities ranging from 430 to 458 C. The Silurian shales may lie at optimal depths for maturity and natural gas recovery.

Poland has currently seen the most activity of foreign companies with ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Marathon, Chevron, Talisman, Lane Energy, BNK Petroleum, Emfesz, EurEnergy Resources, RAG, San Leon Energy and Sorgenia E&P all involved at some level in exploratory work. Quotes on potential Polish reserves range from 1.5 to 5 trillion cubic meters, indicating that it is still unclear what the numbers really are.

These are some big names is the business, and for a little junior to have such a big position is impressive. Not that they will be able to develop the asset on their own. But if drilling by majors in relatively close proximity to Realm’s land meets success, Realm will become a belle of the ball as the majors will move quickly to gain control of the resource.

So with big reserve potential, and cheap land costs – under $1 per acre sometimes vs. $5000 per acre in North America – for both oil and gas – and gas prices are at least 50% higher in Europe than North America and the economics for a big discovery could be very compelling.

Great indicators of a project’s likelihood of success can often be discerned by the talent the company attracts. Realm announced on the 7th of June this year that Mike Mullen joined the company as chief operating officer. Mr. Mullen brings nearly 30 years of experience and expertise in unconventional reservoir characterization to the company. His experience as a shale stimulation petrophysicist has included work on tight gas formations, coalbed methane, shale oil and shale gas. Most recently, he led a multidisciplinary group of engineers specializing in the integration of petrophysics, reservoir simulation and economic stimulation design with Halliburton’s technical team in Denver, Colo. He has led the successful design and execution of hundreds of successful stimulations across a wide range of North America’s major shale plays including the Barnett, Fayetteville, Woodford, Marcellus, Haynesville, Mancos and Bakken shales.

This is the first of 2 vertical wells that Lane Energy (3Legs sub) and ConocoPhillips plan to drill this year with a horozontal well planned for next year. Lane is currently the operator but Conoco has the ability to earn-in up to 70% by funding the exploration work.

Poland’s state-owned oil and gas company PGNiG is completing the drilling. They drilled the first well to a depth of 3,000 meters earlier this year and encountered gas so Lane Energy is expecting the current vertical well to be successful. Drilling is currently taking place on concession block #28. Lane’s second vertical well that should begin in the next several weeks on block #70 is where Realm also has 100% owned ground. Rig time has already been booked for this.

PGNiG has more than a dozen concessions and is also currently drilling on Block #296 which is South of the Lane’s ground and not far from Realm’s Wegrow concession.

What Exactly Are ‘Oil Shales’?
According the International Oil Shale Journal, oil shale is an organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock that contains significant amounts of kerogen (a solid mixture of organic chemical compounds) from which liquid hydrocarbons can be extracted. Kerogen requires more processing to use than crude oil, which increases its cost as a crude-oil substitute both financially and in terms of its environmental impact. Deposits of oil shale occur around the world, including major deposits in the United States of America. Estimates of global deposits range from 2.8 trillion to 3.3 trillion barrels of recoverable oil.

The chemical process of pyrolysis can convert the kerogen in oil shale into synthetic crude oil. Heating oil shale to a sufficiently high temperature will drive off a vapor which processing can distill (retort) to yield a petroleum-like shale oil—a form of unconventional oil—and combustible oil-shale gas (the term shale gas can also refer to gas occurring naturally in shales). Industry can also burn oil shale directly as a low-grade fuel for power generation and heating purposes and can use it as a raw material in chemical and construction-materials processing.

Oil shale has gained attention as an energy resource as the price of conventional sources
of petroleum has risen and as a way for some areas to secure independence from external suppliers of energy. At the same time, oil-shale mining and processing raise a number of environmental concerns, such as land use, waste disposal, water use, waste-water management, greenhouse-gas emissions and air pollution. Estonia and China have well-established oil shale industries, and Brazil, Germany, Israel and Russia also utilize oil shale.

There’s difference between producing gas from oil shales, (Questerre has a very informative video on the process here), and extracting oil from shales.

Gas can generally be extracted using multi-stage hydraulic fracing which has become a very economic production technique – especially for near surface deposits. In fact, as evidence by the slide at right, Encana, Canada’s largest natural gas company, predicts that the market share of shale gas will grow from its current levels of 16% to over 50% of all gas sold by 2020. This is because these shale gas ‘mega plays’ (like the one Questerre is developing) produce gas very cheaply compared to conventional production sources. So even with gas prices stuck in a low rut, it makes sense to invest in the companies who will be able to deliver gas profitably to a market whose appetite is still increasing. Shale gas plays will displace conventional gas plays from the market over time simply because they are so cheap in the long run.

Source: Midas Letter

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Mar 05

Shale Gas the future for Poland?

By ckeddy shale gas, shale gas in Europe 1 Comment »

US know-how could quicken development of shale-gas extraction technologies in Europe, while Poland’s hopes for the technology rise Europe can learn much from the US about how to use its shale-gas sources, according to Halliburton’s ( NYSE: HAL) expert on unconventional resources.

Speaking at the recent  III CE Gas Summit 2010 about whether US shale-gas development could be cloned in Europe, Reinhard Pongratz said that using US know-how could significantly shorten Europe’s learning curve. “If we are more aggressive in trying to deliver US technology to Europe, the development phase can be shorter,” he said. Not all technologies can be copied, but Europe can make much use of the knowledge, he said.

Mr Pongratz was also optimistic about the price of shale gas. “If [extracting shale-gas] can be done economically in the US, we can do it here,” he said.

In early 2009, Realm Energy International Corporation (TSX.V: RLM) began collaborating with Halliburton Consulting on a global evaluation of shale plays with potential for natural gas and oil production with an initial focus on Europe.

The idea of extracting shale gas gained momentum in Poland earlier this year, when Wood MacKenzie experts estimated that the country could be sitting on 1,400 billion cubic meters of shale gas. Other estimates put the amount at as much as 3,000 billion cubic meters.

Poland consumes around 14 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year. If the Wood MacKenzie estimations are correct, shale gas extraction could bring the country gas independence for 100 years, at current consumption rates.

Currently, Poland’s annual gas production from domestic sources equals around 4.1 billion cubic meters. About 70 percent of Poland’s gas for consumption is imported.

“We will know how much shale gas there is in Poland in about four years, when the licenses granted to companies looking for this type of gas in Poland will begin to expire,” said Henryk Jezierski, deputy environment minister and chief national geologist.

The first test drills will begin this year and Mr Jezierski estimates that commercial exploitation of shale gas sources will be possible in 10 to 15 years. In the US, shale gas currently constitutes about 10 percent of gas production, but is expected to reach 50 percent by 2020.

Source: Natural Gas for Europe

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Mar 02

Unconvential Gas Conference to be held in London

By ckeddy shale gas in Europe No Comments »

The SMi Group will be presenting Unconventional Gas 2010 on March 15th and 16th in London, England.

Europe’s leading Unconventional Gas conference brings together industry experts and project operators to discuss the drivers, constraints and opportunities for non-conventional operations.

Unconventional gas resources are expected to steer the future of the energy sector in the coming years.  Held at London’s Marriott Hotel Regents Park, SMi’s 3rd Unconventional Gas  conference will be taking a practical look at unconventional gas production challenges, where the pressure is on to reduce costs and still deliver positive results.

Key Topics Include:
•    Common challenges of unconventional gas reservoirs
•    Shale exploration for new entrants in Europe
•    Improving returns on tight gas

Keynote speakers and presenters include representatives of BG Group, Statoil ASA,  Royal Dutch Shell, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, and the British Geological Society and Realm Energy International Corp.

SMi is also presenting two associated events at the same venue on March 17th -  Data Acquisition and Exploration Strategies in Unconventional Gas: Enterprise Value Assessment and Critical Elements of Gas Shale Reservoir Characterization.

Source: SMi

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Jan 06

Realm Energy, Halliburton Driving Shale Play Development Outside North America

By Trevor J. Murphy shale gas in Europe 1 Comment »

From: New Technology Magazine, December 21 2009

In an effort to accelerate shale gas development, Realm Energy International Corporation and Halliburton have announced they will aggressively continue the evaluation of high potential shale deposits throughout Europe and select emerging countries.

In early 2009, Realm Energy began collaborating with Halliburton Consulting on a global evaluation of shale plays with potential for natural gas and oil production. Shale deposits are a proven and significant resource in North America and an emerging unconventional resource in other areas of the world.

With an initial focus on Europe, Realm Energy and Halliburton successfully selected eight discrete sedimentary basins in seven European countries, identified key prospect trends and targeted a substantial amount of petroleum and natural gas leases for acquisition.

“Following our evaluation, Realm Energy is pleased to inform its shareholders that the company is in the process of acquiring large contiguous tracts of land over significant shale formations,” said Realm Energy chairman Craig Steinke.

“As we enter the exploration and development phase of our strategy, we can rapidly transfer Halliburton’s extensive shale knowledge and modify best practices from all North American shale plays to continental Europe and beyond.”

Going forward, Realm Energy will access Halliburton’s global infrastructure and partnerships, leading edge solutions and customized strategies for optimizing value from each specific shale formation, with the highest environmental standards.

Halliburton is one of the world’s largest providers of products and services to the energy industry. The company serves the upstream oil and gas industry throughout the life cycle of the reservoir-from locating hydrocarbons and managing geological data, to drilling and formation evaluation, well construction and completion, and optimizing production through the life of the field.

Realm Energy International Corporation is a Canadian domiciled global energy company focused on driving the exploration and development of major shale plays throughout Europe and emerging countries. The company is in the process of acquiring petroleum and natural gas rights in large contiguous tracts which it has identified as high potential, and is committed to leveraging the most advanced shale technology to bring these resources into production.

SOURCE
New Technology Magazine: “Realm Energy, Halliburton Driving Shale Play Development Outside North America”

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