Proactive Investors - Pantheon Resources (LON:PANR) said an independent report has estimated almost one billion barrels of oil at its Kodiak project, formerly known as Theta West, in Alaska.
Netherland, Sewell & Associates (NSAI) carried out the assessment with 2C or mean average contingent resources estimated at 962.5mln barrels, a low estimate of 437.8 million and 2.01 billion in a best-case scenario.
Jay Cheatham, Pantheon's chief executive, said: "This really is a big deal. A credible third-party estimate of nearly one billion barrels of recoverable liquids for a company the size of Pantheon is an incredible achievement, validating our geological model".
Pantheon said the estimates are also of material value as the fluids identified can be blended and underpin the development plans for the Kodiak project, which will involve the development of leases totalling some 126,000 acres
Pantheon plans to drill the next Kodiak appraisal well in recently acquired leases some five miles northwest of Theta West-1.
Bob Rosenthal, Pantheon's Technical Director, added: “For perspective, it is very rare to see certified resources of this size, particularly onshore and near to infrastructure.
“NSAI's evaluation of Kodiak is a transformational milestone on the path to commercialisation. I remind shareholders that this report on Kodiak only covers the Lower Basin Floor Fan, based on three wells and our proprietary 3-D seismic data set.”
David Hobbs, Pantheon's executive chairman, noted that NSAI conducted an intensive review of the data, adding “We remain on track to meet our strategic goal of delivering sustainable market recognition of $5 - $10 per barrel of recoverable resources."
NSAI has now been commissioned to complete a similar report on the Alkaid horizon at the Ahpun project, with expected completion in the final quarter of this year.