Trio Petroleum Corp (NYSE: TPET) shares began Thursday slightly to the good. The Bakersfield, Calif-based oil and gas company, announced oil production, using a downhole heater, from its first well HSO 2-4 on its Asphalt Ridge Project in Uintah County, Utah. This confirms that the pay zone bitumen, when heated, becomes less viscous and is able to drain into the wellbore and be pumped to the surface.
Commented CEO Robin Ross, "The Asphalt Ridge Project is a very special project, known to be one of the largest tar-sand deposits in North America outside of Canada, making it a potential giant oilfield.”
According to J. Wallace Gwynn of Energy News, it is estimated to be the largest measured tar-sand resource in the United States. And given its low wax, negligible sulfur content, is expected to make the oil very desirable for many industries, including shipping. We believe that this project has the potential of being both large and profitable for the Company. According to an Optimization Study conducted by Dr Amanda Bustin, President of Bustin Earth Science Consultants, the HSO 2-4 well, which is approximately 1,390 feet deep, has an estimated ultimate recovery (“EUR”) of 300,000 barrels of oil with an estimated initial production rate of approximately 40 barrels of oil per day. Trio’s leasehold at the Asphalt Ridge Project includes approximately 30,000 acres thought to be capable of two-and-a-half-acre well spacing.
TPET shares grasped 0.24 cents, or 1.2%, to 20 cents.
