Firm gets 26% stake in oil driller

Publicly listed Atok-Big Wedge Co. Inc. has acquired a 26-percent stake in Forum Energy Plc, a company that is currently exploring the highly prospective sites in Recto Bank in offshore Palawan for oil and gas.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Atok-Big Wedge said the stake was acquired through the acquisition of Hong Kong firm Tidemark Holdings Ltd.

Prior to its acquisition, Tidemark owned 8.64 million shares of Forum Energy, representing approximately 25.92 percent of Forum Energy’s outstanding capital. The ordinary shares of Forum Energy are traded and listed in the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange.

Forum Energy earlier said it expected to have the results of the interpretation of seismic data from the highly prospective SC 72 to be completed within this quarter. The joint venture completed earlier this year the acquisition of 564,887 square kilometers of 3D (three-dimensional) seismic data collected over the Sampaguita gas field and 2,202 line-kilometers of 2D seismic data over the remainder of the block.

The interpretation of these data will allow the SC 72 joint venture to identify drillable targets within the Recto Bank.

The Sampaguita prospect alone is estimated to contain as much as 3.4 trillion cubic feet of gas. Aside from this large discovery, the SC 72 field was reported to contain at least eight other potential leads.

Between now and mid-2013, the SC 72 joint venture plans to spend $86 million to pursue exploration activities, which included the drilling of an appraisal well and an exploration well.

Forum Energy holds a 70-percent interest in the SC 72 license, while the remaining 30 percent is held by Monte Oro Resources and Energy Inc.