NEWS BULLETIN

December 21, 2004 --- Vol. 10, No. 122December 2004

Andex secures agreements for investors in Nenana basin

Andex Resources said late yesterday it has signed agreements with investors in its plan to explore for natural gas in the Nenana basin, west of Nenana in Interior Alaska.

Under the agreement Andex, which has offices in Houston and Denver, will continue to be the operator of the project. Investors in the project include Usibelli Energy, an affiliate of Usibelli Coal Mine of Healy, Alaska, and two Native regional corporations, Fairbanks-based Doyon Ltd. and Barrow-based Arctic Slope Regional Corp.

Andex said an exploration program is planned to assess the natural gas resources of more than 500,000 acres it has under lease through both an exploration license and leases from the state of Alaska, the Mental Health Lands Trust and Doyon, the company said in a statement.

“Completion of approximately 218 miles of 2D seismic line is scheduled for the winter of 2004/2005. Results of the seismic program are expected to identify potential drilling targets for future exploratory wells,” Andex said.

“We are very pleased to have our new Alaskan partners on board,” said Andex President Tom Dodds. “This project has the potential to provide significant benefits to Alaska, especially the Interior region, and Andex is fortunate to have local partners who can help us develop the resource in a manner that all Alaskans can be proud of.”

Andex has said in the past that it hopes to find commercial quantities of natural gas in the Nenana basin for delivery to Fairbanks.

Bob Mason in Andex’s Denver office is still exploration manager for the Nenana project.

Note: See full story in the Dec. 26 issue of Petroleum News.

Chevron Canada, BP spud Arctic well

A joint venture by Chevron Canada Resources and BP Canada Energy has made a quick start to winter drilling in the Canadian Arctic, spudding the season’s first well.

The Olivier H-1 gas exploration well, on Exploration License 422 about 60 miles northwest of Inuvik, Northwest Territories, started drilling on Dec. 19.

Dave Pommer, a spokesman for operator Chevron Canada, told Petroleum News that the well is expected to take 100 days to complete. The targeted depth is not being disclosed.

He said a combination of favorable weather and the joint venture’s decision to barge a rig to the region before freeze-up will “allow us to make an earlier start and hopefully finish earlier.”

By positioning equipment and supplies, Chevron Canada believes it can add about seven weeks to the Arctic operating season.

Olivier H-1 will be the major portion of Chevron Canada’s plans to spend about C$100 million in the Mackenzie Delta/Beaufort Sea region this winter.

The program is expected to include two 3-D seismic programs and possibly testing of some earlier wells.

A second well by a partnership of EnCana, Anadarko Canada and ConocoPhillips Canada has been tentatively scheduled to start this month.


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