Gran Tierra's Grand Tour (into Ecuador)

Gran Tierra has won three blocks in Ecuador covering c.140,000 acres in the highly prospective Oriente-Putumayo Basin: Charapa, Chanangue and Iguana. The blocks are contiguous with Gran Tierra’s Putumayo position in Colombia and allows the company to extend its Colombian success on the trend across the border.

Gran Tierra will have 100% interest and operatorship on each block in exchange for a 14 well, four year work programme – management plans to commence the programme in 2020, to be fully funded from internal cash flow.  The contracts work on a sliding scale for contractor share of revenues, ranging from 87.5% at USD30/bbl to 40% at USD120/bbl.

The Charpara block sets Gran Tierra off to a good start with an existing field and historical production from the B-Limestone. As Gran Tierra matures its new acreage, there is scope to construct its own gathering infrastructure and use the export infrastructure in Ecuador. In due course, this could also be an export route for its Colombian production in the same way that Amerisur has built its own OBA pipeline from its Platanillo block to Ecuador (see Bienvenido Victor Hugo and Putumayo smart crude marketing).

The other side of the border into Ecuador has always been an exciting play. Whilst geologically the same trend, the Colombian side of the border has been underexplored due to historical above ground conflict and security issues. In contrast, Ecuador has been highly successful with many fields where nearly 6bnbbl of oil has already been produced.

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Putumayo smart crude marketing

Putumayo producers are blessed with having multiple export routes and the flexibility that affords in maximising sales netbacks.

The most direct route is the OTA pipeline to Tumaco. However this route has historically been plagued by attacks leading to downtime and the South Blend crude at Tumaco also fetches one of the biggest discounts to benchmarks vs. other region blends.

This has led to producers accessing Ecuadorian export routes through either the OCP or SOTE pipeline to Esmeraldes. At the port of Esmeraldes, the two key blends are Napo (19° API) and Oriente (24° API). Oriente being the lighter crude fetches a higher price.

Another option that has been employed is the trucking or part truck/part pipe of crude to Coveñas. At this port, the Vasconia blend fetches a good price and sells into the Caribbean market.

At the end of 2016, Amerisur completed its OBA pipeline linking its Platanillo field directly to Ecuadorian export infrastructure. Previously, Amerisur had to truck crude to a pipeline entry point to the OSO or OTA pipeline. The OBA link allowed Amerisur to reduce average transportation costs from c.USD14/bbl to below USD4/bbl. The link, despite taking many years to complete, cost USD18 million and in February 2018 Amerisur announced that the pipeline had been paid by within 15 months with cost savings achieved to that date of USD20 million.

Related link: Bienvenido Victor Hugo

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Amerisur putting plans in motion

Amerisur is a story of slow and steady wins the race. The company had targeted 10mbbl/d to be reached a few years ago - with current production only at c.7mbbl/d, this target has clearly fallen by the wayside. Amerisur has learnt, and is continuing to learn, that doing business in Colombia (and Ecuador) is not straightforward and getting necessary government approvals can take months and sometimes years rather than weeks - the OBA pipeline being a case in point. Layer on top of this the local community liaisons and security issues in the Putumayo Basin, one begins to understand the impediments to Amerisur's progress over the past years.

Nevertheless the Amerisur team has managed its portfolio and navigated the winding road of being a Colombian E&P carefully and is now one of a small handful of successful producers in the Putumayo Basin. As well as building up its asset base beyond what was effectively a single asset company in Platanillo, Amerisur has made good progress on the exploration and appraisal front which will set the company up for the longer term.

Amerisur is a company we continue to watch with interest and with enough patience, is a rare success story that will materialise over time.

Drilling Update

North Platanillo
At the start of 2017, Amerisur had success at Plat-22 encountering 43ft of U-sands and flowing at 800bbl/d, extending the Platanillo field north. This was followed by Plat-21 which derisked the extension further testing 430b/d.  Plat-25 came in below expectations, but was sidetracked to target better reservoir quality and additional pay thickness, and was brought on production at 180 bbl/d. In December, Plat 27 encountered net pay of 12ft in the U and 9ft in the T sands. This success could add up to 10mmbbl of reserves.

In 2018, drilling activity on Platanillo switches to the N sand stratigraphic play with the upcoming planned three-well programme targeting the 18.8mmbbl N Sand Anomaly (expected to start in Q1 2018).

Mariposa (CPO-5, Amerisur 30%, ONGC 70%)
Mariposa-1 was successfully drilled in May 2017 which flowed at 4.6mbbl/d 41API light oil. The well was drilled to a total depth of 11,556ft with an indicated 120ft net pay in the L3 Sands. The well is now producing around 3,200b/d (gross) on Long Term Test on a restricted choke.

Further drilling is planned on the block in 2018 (including Indico-1 and Sol) which could add material reserves to the portfolio.

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Amerisur makes a move

 

On 26 January 2016, Amerisur announced the acquisition of Platino Energy (Barbados) Ltd, a subsidiary of COG Energy, a private E&P with a focus on Colombia. The consideration for the transaction is USD7 million which we be paid entirely in Amerisur stock, through the issuance of 22.7 million new shares. A further payment of USD500,000 in cash will also be made in respect of fixed assets. As part of the deal, COG is entitled to a 2% overriding royalty if production in the acquired blocks exceeds 5,000bopd.

The transaction adds prospective acreage (190mmbbls unrisked resources) to Amerisur’s Putumayo Basin portfolio at a limited cost with drill ready prospects close to the company’s Platanillo field. Commitments are limited to USD12 million across the next three years. New production from the blocks would have access to Amerisur’s new pipeline to Ecuador, once completed.

The acquired assets include:

• PUT-8 (Amerisur 50%) immediately west of Platanillo with 45mmbbl in unrisked resources in similar structure
• Coati Block (Amerisur 100%) holds 79mmbbl unrisked resources and the Temblon field with long-term testing potential; the next exploration well is partly carried by Canacol (part of farm-in deal for 20%, excluding Temblon)
• Andaquies Block (Amerisur 100%)

The blocks have no or limited X-factors and are covered by 2D and 3D seismic. Drilling commitments include one exploration well on PUT-8 and the Andaquies Block by May 2017 (although some environmental licenses are still to be secured).

On the export pipeline, Amerisur continues to engage with the Ecuadorean authorities to secure the final EIA approval and complete construction of their strategic pipeline connection through Ecuador. This will reduce transportation costs and increase off take capacity.

Amerisur's acquired and existing acreage
Source: Broker research

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Bienvenido Victor Hugo

Amerisur's pipeline into the Victor Hugo field

On 1 December, Amerisur provided an operational update on its interconnector pipeline from Platanillo to the Ecuadorian export pipeline. Once operational, oil export will benefit from the low cost, under-utilised Ecuadorian infrastructure bringing transportation costs to below USD5/bbl. In addition to improved netbacks, the excess export capacity will support increasing production levels at Platanillo.

The pipeline is expected to be operational at the beginning of 2016 compared to the original expectations of end 2015 due to an outstanding environmental approval, which has been delayed by personnel changes at the Ecuadorian Environment Ministry. The permit is expected to be issued imminently and will allow the drilling of the 1.4km under-river crossing from Platanillo to the Ecuadorian river bank and construction of the 3.8km pipeline from the river bank to the connection point (under construction) at the southern point of the Victor Hugo field.

Pipe laying operations have commenced from the facilities on the Victor Hugo field to the new connection point – this 14km stretch of pipeline should be fully welded and trenched by year end. At the Victor Hugo field itself, civil works to prepare for the receipt and handling of Platanillo crude are c.80% complete with tankage, piping and instrumentation largely in place.

The pipeline should be ready for operational testing and commissioning around year end with initial transportation of oil through January. Aside from the environmental approvals, certification of the LACT units (fiscal measuring points) on the Colombian and Ecuadorian sides will take around two weeks once the pipeline is operational.

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