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Max Petroleum, Valiant Petroleum, Gulf Keystone, African Minerals, Cluff Gold news briefs

By Fox-Davies Capital

Max Petroleum announced that it has commenced drilling the KZN-1 exploration well on the North Kyzylzhar II East Block prospect in Block E, the second of twelve post-salt exploration prospects scheduled to be drilled by the Company on Blocks A&E in Kazakhstan. Furthermore, the Company will commence testing the BOR-1 exploration well on the Borkyldakty prospect in Block E later this week, upon obtaining final regulatory approvals.
Comment: Well KZN-1 is targeting post-salt objectives at around 1,500m depth and should take 25 days to drill. Mean prospective resources are ca.20MMb for the prospect with a chance of success above 40%.

Valiant Petroleum announced that Don Southwest and West Don production via the permanent pipeline export route to the nearby Thistle platform was commissioned on 5 March 2010 and the delivery of oil has commenced. Completion of the Thistle export route has also allowed the Don Southwest partners to start production from the recently side-tracked Area 22, the final production well associated with the first phase of the development. The well has performed in-line with expectations reaching initial flow rates equivalent to over 15,000 barrels of oil per day. Water injection into Area 5 in the north of Don Southwest has also commenced.

Gulf Keystone announced that it has today drawn down ?900,000 of its ?30 million Standby Equity Distribution Agreement ("SEDA") with YA Global Master SPV Ltd. This draw down of funds is the seventh under the SEDA and brings to ?17,960,000 the amount of funds drawn down to date. The remaining undrawn funds under the SEDA facility are ?12,040,000.

African Minerals announced the release of a full Mineral Experts Report relating to the updated magnetite iron ore Mineral Resource. Total Indicated resources stand at 6.1Bt at 29.5% Fe, 45.5% SiO2 and 5.5% Al2O3, and inferred resources are 4.4Bt at 28.3% Fe, 46% SiO2 and 6.2% Al2O3.

Cluff Gold announced the 31 December 2009 resource and reserve position at its operating mines in Burkina Faso and Cote d'Ivoire, together with exploration plans for these projects. At Kalsaka in Burkina Faso, reserves stand at 298,000ozs of gold, sufficient for a further three and a half years of production at the current plant capacity of 1.6Mtpa. A follow-up drill programme will focus on four near-plant prospects where previous drilling has shown potential for additional resources and a regional exploration programme will focus on a number of structures within the 20 kilometre prospective corridor that are considered to have the potential to host a resource at least equivalent in magnitude to that already defined at Kalsaka. At Angovia, reserves stand at 89,000ozs of gold, sufficient for a further two years of production at the current plant capacity of 1.08Mtpa. New exploration programme is planned to target gold deposits close to the processing plant.