LOS ANGELES, March 24, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Sonoran Energy, Inc. (OTCBB:SNRN) announced recently that it has entered into an agreement to acquire a 15 percent Working Interest in a Southern Californian oilfield, producing over 1400 barrels per day through its operating partner. Sonoran is positioned to significantly benefit from rising demand for U.S. domestic oil production in light of the brewing International oil production crisis due to war, strikes, and terrorist threats.
The Nigerian subsidiaries of Royal Dutch/Shell Group (NYSE:RD) (NYSE:SC), ChevronTexaco Corp. (NYSE:CVX) and TotalFinaElf have halted production totaling 817,500 barrels a day, or about 40% of Nigeria's output of some 2 million b/d amid violence between rival ethnic groups, the Ijaws and Itsekiri, leading up to April 19 parliamentary and presidential elections. Militant Ijaws reportedly threatened to blow up multinational oil installations they said they had captured in retaliation for government military raids.
Venezuela's oil industry collapsed in December, when employees at state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela walked off the job, angry about changes in the company under the administration of President Hugo Chavez. By the height of the strike, 16,000 employees had walked out, and production shrank to 200,000 barrels a day, costing Venezuela $6 billion. The country had to import fuel to keep vehicles moving, and drivers waited days at gas stations. The strike, which failed to oust Chavez or call early elections, was strongest in the oil sector, though businesses around the country shut down.
Oil-well firefighters from Houston-based Boots & Coots International Well Control (AMEX:WEL) are traveling to southern Iraq to assess damage in the country's key Rumaila oil fields. The firefighting teams are looking at a timetable of 30 to 45 days to extinguish the fires and cap the wells. But one source said the timing will depend on "what's all there." The Pentagon has contacted a number of major oil industry service companies -- among them Halliburton Co. (NYSE:HAL) , once run by Vice President Dick Cheney -- to repair any of Iraq's wells that are damaged and assess everything from wells to pipelines and pumping stations.
Sonoran Energy, Inc. (OTCBB:SNRN) announced recently that the Company has entered into an agreement to acquire a 15 percent Working Interest in a Southern Californian oilfield, producing over 1400 barrels per day through its operating partner. Sonoran Energy will receive a 5 percent Working Interest outright in exchange for securing a portion of the financing on the project. The Company will also have the sole option to acquire an additional 10 percent Working Interest after analyzing field performance of the project. The cumulative production from the target field is over 150 million barrels of oil. The Company believes there is an additional probable reserve of eight million barrels of oil by fully developing this shallow depth, mature field. Life expectancy of the field under the current decline rate is 25 years. A 15 percent Working Interest would give Sonoran Energy approximately 180 net barrels of oil per day from the field. The Company anticipates closing the agreement by mid-April 2003 following completion of due diligence on the property. Disclaimer: Paradigm Communications, Inc. has received cash compensation for featuring SNRN in the amount of $1500.