United Oil & Gas (AIM:UOG) told investors that a drilling rig and long-lead availability study for its Walton-Morant licence offshore Jamaica has identified a double-digit pool of suitable, available rigs, along with the key long-lead equipment and a Jamaica-based logistics model needed for a future exploration campaign.
The AIM-listed oil and gas company, which holds a high-impact exploration asset in Jamaica alongside a UK development asset, commissioned the study from NRG Well Management to run alongside its ongoing farm-out process for the licence.
The study covers the Colibri prospect, with mean prospective resources of 406 million barrels of oil in roughly 750 metres of water, and the deeper Thunderball lead, with 603 million barrels in roughly 1,900 metres of water, together accounting for more than 1 billion barrels of mean prospective resource that could be targeted in a single campaign.
United had appointed NRG in September to assess rig suitability, market day rates, mobilisation timelines and long-lead procurement schedules, describing the exercise as forward-planning that does not commit the company to drilling.
"The completion of this study is an important step forward for the Walton-Morant licence," said chief executive Brian Larkin, adding that it gives prospective farm-in partners "immediate, practical and usable information on the potential delivery of a future exploration campaign."
Larkin said Colibri and Thunderball represent two targets within a wider portfolio of 40 leads and prospects at Walton-Morant containing more than 7.2 billion barrels of prospective resource, a figure derived from United's arithmetic sum of estimates made by the company and previous operators across the licence.
The logistics model identified combines existing Jamaican port and commercial infrastructure, including cargo handling, storage, heavy lifting and marine fuel supply, with specialist offshore services sourced from established regional hubs.
Read more about United Oil & Gas
- 10/09/26United Oil & Gas commissions drilling study for Jamaica licence
- 03/07/26United Oil & Gas raises £500,000 in placing to fund farm-out push
- 08/04/26United Oil & Gas's Jamaica exploration case boosted by latest analysis
Direct engagement with equipment suppliers has clarified availability, sourcing options and procurement timelines for the principal long-lead items a future drilling programme would require.
Any eventual drilling campaign remains subject to regulatory approval from the Government of Jamaica and the execution of commercial agreements, the company said.
The study follows a £500,000 placing United completed in July to fund working capital for the Jamaica farm-out push, and comes after a February subsurface geochemical survey detected hydrocarbon signatures the company said were consistent with a potential thermogenic contribution to the licence.
Larkin said the company's immediate focus "remains on concluding the farm-out process."
