nothing went wrong !

I do believe some pi's were put off by the low (20b per day,high quality 36 degree gravity oil )...but this has only just begun, and the first drill is a test drill..now the the real work is just beginning..

{Higher rates will depend on FINAL PUMP SELECTION and depletion by offset well bores!}


Trinidad, Texas and Georgia could be showing good results by October and may take the sp above 25p...but Puntland could be a real winner! Every analyst/survey report suggest there could be 'giant' or even 'super giant' fields in Somalia, geologically similar to the Yemen. I am not suggesting we will stike a 'super giant' in our sector..but potentially a billion + barrels is not a ridiculous possibility? We could then sell our interest here to fund other assets or even expand our interest in TPT?

Oil and Gas Potential
In a 1991 World Bank co-ordinated study intended to encourage private investment in the petroleum potential of eight African nations Somalia and the Sudan topped the list of potential commercial oil producers. Sudan is now a producer primarily due to the relatively calmer political climate of that country in the last decade.

The earliest indication of oil in Somalia was a large oil seep southeast of Berbera and several other seeps in various locations within the country. However, early exploration concentrated on an anticline structural approach since this had met with success in the Arabian Peninsula and it took the oil companies a number of years to abandon this approach in Somalia. There is no evidence of large scale compressive folding in Somalia and the anticlines in the north of the country appear to be associated with the Miocene separation of Africa and Arabia and hence post-Mesozoic and early Tertiary oil and gas accumulations. Therefore, hydrocarbon accumulations must be sought in older structures and strata graphic traps.

Somalia had been previously identified to possess all the requirements for a petroleum province. Hydrocarbons had been generated in the Jurassic, Cretaceous and Tertiary rocks with a sedimentary column thickening to 8830m. Many porous reservoirs are known both in carbonate and clastic rocks and various types of traps are believed to be present.

This view was further reinforced in the mid 1980?s following the successful exploration efforts of Hunt Oil Corp across the Gulf of Aden in Yemen. There Hunt discovered multi- billion barrel oil reserves that their geologists believed were part of a great underground rift or valley that arced into and across northern Somalia.

Several major oil companies obtained exploration concessions and conducted considerable exploration and drilling over large parts of the State both onshore and offshore during the late 1980?s and early 90?s. These companies included AGIP, Shell (Pecten), Conoco, Phillips and Amoco.

Range has been able to obtain through Government sources previous exploration documentation relating to the hydrocarbon exploration in the Nogal Valley area in Puntland up until 1991. The documentation includes original seismic tapes, well logs and processed seismic sections identifying major targets found prior to exploration activities ceasing in Somalia. Upon review of the data it was noted that the Nogal Valley area demonstrated:

Abundant oil shows;
Thick, high porosity reservoirs;
Many large structures; and
An excellent regional seal.
Range believes that the data provides further evidence of the large potential for hydrocarbons in the Nugaal and Dharoor Valley areas. The data is currently being reviewed by Range and its JV partner and if possible will be reprocessed with the benefit of modern computer techniques and knowledge gained in the similar basins in Yemen. Range is of the view that this data will prove to be extremely valuable in fast tracking exploration activities in Puntland and commencing the first drilling program with its joint venture partner, and operator, Africa Oil Corp. ]