MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

UK company begins hydrocarbons prospecting in the Paraguayan Chaco

Buongermini admits it’s a long task since there’s not much info on the area

Amerisur Resources Plc, the oil and gas producer and explorer announced on Monday it has received a Prospecting Permit by Paraguay’s Ministry of Public Works and Communications for the Espartillar block in the Paraguayan Chaco.

The area covers approximately 2,400,000 hectares in the Piriti-Pilar basin in western Paraguay. This basin is believed to be an extension of the producing Lomas de Olmedo sub-basin in Argentina.

According to a release from Amerisur Resources the company will now commence initial studies on this block, alongside Las Palmas and Coronillo blocks, which cover approximately 2,400,000 and 402,000 hectares respectively to determine further detailed gravity data in these new blocks.

Depending on these results, the company will decide if it will apply for a Concession Contract for exploration and exploitation and seek farm out opportunities in these assets in order to acquire seismic data and drilling of these prospects to be developed.

Amerisur Resources which trades in AIM is an oil and gas explorer and developer focused on South America. The countries of operation are Colombia and Paraguay.

Amerisur Resources has interests in the following prospects: in Colombia: Platanillo - 100% working interest and Fénix - currently 100% working interest, reducing to 80% and potentially 70% under the terms of Reto farm out agreement

In Paraguay it has the San Pedro Block - 100% owned and Curupayty Block, also 100% owned.

According to Emilio Buongermini, head of Hydrocarbons Department in the Mines and Energy ministry prospecting task means collecting and assessing historic data which Amerisur Resources will reprocess and then decide the following steps.

“The prospecting operation has an additional ingredient in this case and that is an air magnetic-survey which will supply very valuable info about the geology of the area, on which there are not many records and that is also the reason for such extensive permits in area”, said Buongermini.

“We expect these operations to last 12 to 15 months”, said the Paraguayan oil expert adding that based on that data the company will decide whether to begin (or not) the exploration phase.