Bontan Corporation (Bontan) announced Feb. 2 the results of the evaluation report prepared by Chapman Petroleum Engineering Ltd. on two prospects located on the Mira and Sarah Drilling Licenses, Offshore Israel. For the Mira Prospect, the best estimate of gross prospective sales gas resources is 4.24 tcf and for the Sarah Prospect, the best estimate of gross prospective sales gas resources is 1.47 tcf. Bontan will have an indirect 71.625% indirect interest in these prospects via its 75% equity interest in the Israel Petroleum Company which has acquired a 95.5% interest in the drilling licenses as well as an adjoining exploration permit from the current operator subject to approval by the Government of Israel.
The Mira Prospect is a large structure mapped with 2D seismic and targeting the same reservoir zone as the Tamar Field discovered in 2009. The Tamar Field is approximately 30 miles directly to the north of the Mira Prospect with reported reserves of 7.7 tcf. The Sarah Prospect is another structure mapped with 2D seismic. It is on the same trend and targeting the same reservoir zone as the recent Dalit discovery well drilled in 2009, approximately 10 miles due north. Reported reserves for the Dalit Field are 0.5 tcf.
The Mira and Sarah Drilling Licenses are adjoining blocks located 30 to 60 miles offshore Israel within the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. They are each 154 sq. mi. in size and to date no exploratory drilling has been done on either block. A 3D seismic program was completed on the entirety of both blocks in late 2009 and is currently being processed for interpretation.
BHP Billiton's (BHP) Trinidad & Tobago unit is transitioning from an oil-focused entity to an gas-focused one, as the company's oil production declines in the country, while their gas production steadily rises, Reuters reported Jan. 27, citing a statement by John Krome, BHP's vice president for Trinidad operations. In the last four years, BHP's oil production from the Angostura field has dropped to 14,870 b/d from 50,542 b/d. Krome estimates that the company will move into gas production as a majority of production in the country in 1Q 2011. BHP will have the capacity to produce 280 MMcf/d of gas, which will be supplied to the state-owned National Gas Company. The National Gas Company shall in turn market the gas to local petrochemical firms. 
ExxonMobil has signed a memorandum of understanding to sell gas produced from the company's Cepu block in Java, Indonesia to state power utility PLN and gas distributor PGN. "The MoU was signed last year. PLN will use the gas for its power plants and PGN for the city gas project," said Maman Budiman, ExxonMobil's spokesman for Indonesian operations. The gas will be produced from the 1.3-tcf Jambaran field. ExxonMobil holds a 45% stake in the block, while Pertamina holds 45% and a consortium of local Java firms hold the remaining 10% stake.