Circle Oil Plc, is currently planning to farm-out its 40% interest in North West Gemsa field in Egypt.This is coming days after the company announced the completion of the 2016 infill drilling campaign on the field.

The concession, which includes Geyad, Al Amir, Al Amir SE, and Al Ola, is operated by PetroAmir, a joint venture between EGPC and ZhenHua Oil with 50%, Circle Oil with 40% and SDX Energy with 10%.

According to Geol. Hassan Hataba, General Manager of PetroAmir, the North West Gemsa exploration licence, which was converted to Al Amir and Geyad development leases, has been put on sale by the company and the expiry date for receiving offers was May 10, 2016.

He said, the reason for the farm-out of its interest was due to the unfavorable economic conditions. Other factors such as the fall in oil prices, rising expenses and the company’s commitment to banks were the reasons for the consideration of the sale.

In 2008, Circle Oil acquired a 40% interest in the North West Gemsa Block from Premier. The Al Amir and Geyad development leases have an outstanding validity period of over 12 years with extensions open for continued production.

Circle Oil produces between 5500 to 6000 bpd from the field, Energy Egypt reports.

Anita Fatunji