Title: Honduras
1Honduras
- An Introduction to Potential Giant Oil Fields in
Honduras
2Overview
- Rose Dome Energy presents an exciting new play in
Honduras - Large Cretaceous basin that has never been
drilled - Tela Basin or the Western Honduras Basin
- Covers some 5700 square miles
- Exploration target is Cretaceous and Jurassic
sediments - Field work shows 17,000 feet of measured section
in Mesozoic early Tertiary basin - Field work indicates some 9-10 anticlines along
geanticline trend
3Area of Interest
3
4Geological Map of Honduras Map of Honduras
4
5Background
- Field work on the area encompassed three to four
years - Studies of area continued for several years
- Many academic studies and mapping of the area
- Three large anticlines have been mapped in the
field. - Located on the west end of the anticlinorium
- This anticlinorium is referred to in this
presentation as the Mills Anticlinorium
6Anticlinorium
- Two anticlines surveyed near the town of Atima
contain 8,000 and 13,000 acres of closure
respectively - Effective vertical thickness ranges from 1,000 to
2,000 feet - Average dip on the flanks is 25 degrees
- The terrain is very mountainous but the mapped
anticlines are near a paved road
7Geology - Structure
- The anticlines are simple, large structures
- But, the detailed stratigraphy is complex
- The structures were formed in Late Oligocene or
early Miocene - Collectively, the structures are big enough to
yield major oil fields i.e. hundreds of millions
or billions of barrels of oil - With the current price of oil, the smaller
anticlines would be very profitable - Most probably, other anticlines will map out as
targets for exploration
8Anticlinorium
- It is difficult to see the anticlines from
landsat pictures as the terrain is covered with
vegetation and severely dissected by erosion - Field work is necessary for checking of data
9Anticline Trend
Unmapped anticlines
9
10Geology
- No intrusive or extrusive rocks have been seen in
the Mesozoic of Honduras - No sedimentary Paleozoic rocks in Honduras
- Paleontological control is fair to good
- In the Cretaceous section, rudistid and other
reef forming fossils have been documented - Good porosity was noted in this part of the
Cretaceous sediments
11Jimilie Structure
Naranjito Structure
Atima Structure
M
Mapped Structures over Digital Terrain Map
11
1212
13Jimilie Cross-section
Naranjito Cross-section
A
Atima Cross-section
Line of cross sections.
Structure Map of three large anticlines
Structure Map of Three Anticlines
Map is actual field Map
13
1414
1515
1616
1717
18Gilsonite Outcrop
18
1919
20Plate tectonic elements can be seen on geographic
map
20
21Tectonics - Chortis Sub-plate
- The Chortis sub-plate contains most of Honduras
and the northern part of Nicaragua - Originally located on the Pacific side of
southwestern Mexico - It rotated around the southern edge of Mexico and
became part of the Caribbean Plate - The American Plate and the Caribbean Plate came
together in Oligocene time
22Tectonics - Structure
- The plate movements, with some strike slip
activity, formed the Mills Anticlinorium in upper
Oligocene or Miocene times - In addition to the Mills Anticlinorium several
other anticlines to the northwest have been noted
but not mapped (see map of area) - The Chortis Plate is shown as red on next slide
2323
2424
25American Plate
Caribbean Plate
Diagram showing American Plate and Caribbean
Plate. American Plate continues to move westwards.
25
26Area of interest
26
27Magnetic Data - Honduras
- The following two slides contain magnetic data of
Honduras - The basic recorded digital data of the magnetic
survey is not available - Nevertheless, the magnetic data show that the
Atima Block is on a Magnetic high trend, with the
highest reading on the Atima Block - Thus, this data may indicate a basement high with
younger sedimentary draped over the magnetic
anomaly, which could result in large deep seated
structures
28Rose Dome Area of Interest
Aerial magnetic map of Honduras. Red line shows
magnetic high trend that extends across Area of
Interest and on to the southeast.
28
2929
30Source Rocks - Atima Cross-Section
- The limestone on the surface is gray,
occasionally black - Very fossiliferous - rudistids abundant with
other reefal fauna - Black shale sections of the Atima limestone
contain modules of kerogen with very strong
petroleum odor when fractured
31Source Rocks -Guare Formation
- Located above the Atima limestone in the Lower
Cretaceous (Kyg) - Frequently stained with oil
- A brown grease is found within calcite veins
along bedding planes of black shale - Very strong petroleum odor
32Source Rocks
- Distillation of oil seep samples from the
Cantarranas reveals typical heavy paraffin-base
crude types - Kerogen has been found in all the limestones of
the Cantarranas, Atima and Llama formations - Further reservoir rocks may be found in the
porous sandstones of the Plan Grande and Victoria
formations at depth
33Source Rocks
- Shows of oil are scattered throughout the
geological section - Formations with oil shows are noted on the cross
sections - Gilsonite (asphalt) was sampled in an outcrop
northeast of the Jimilie structure - This location is noted on the cross section of
the Jimilie section
34Reservoir Rocks
- Good porosity is noted in the Upper Cretaceous
rocks that contain rudistids and other reef
forming fauna - Other formations of the Cretaceous have porosity
- Further reservoir rocks may be found in the
porous sandstones of the Plan Grande and Victoria
formations at depth -
35Paleontological
- A map showing exact areas where fossils were
collected is available - A list of fauna from each area is available
- The fauna suggests that reefs will be found in
the Cretaceous
36Reserve Potential
- Following are rough estimates of the potential of
the Atima Project. - We have mapped the surface structures which gives
us the surface area of the anticlines. - We put in a thickness of the potential reservoir
rocks. - We will complete the surface mapping on the West
Narranjito structure soon. This will take only a
day or so. - These figures show vividly the excellent
potential of the Honduras project.
37Reserve Potential
- The following estimates are based on 18 porosity
and 70 oil saturation at a reservoir depth of
6500 feet. They also assume 45 recovery by
water drive - Atima Structure (13,000 acres - 300 pay)
- 3,812,000,000 bbls of oil in place
- 1,715,000,000 bbls of oil recoverable
- Narranjito Structure (9,000 acres - 400 pay)
- 3,519,000,000 bbls of oil in place
- 1,583,000,000 bbls of oil recoverable
- Narranjito West Structure (8,000 acres - 250
pay) - 1,955,000,000 bbls of oil in place
- 880,000,000 bbls of oil recoverable
- Jimile Structure (5,000 acres - 300 pay)
- 1,466,000,000 bbls of oil in place
- 660,000,000 bbls of oil recoverable
38Business Environment
- Honduras is friendly to America and would be a
good place for a foreign operation - The Petroleum contract in Honduras is negotiable
- Based on production or financial criteria, a
sliding scale of royalty might be attainable - It is believed that the highest royalty would be
20 - Income tax is 30
- Acreage price is .25 cents/acre
39General
- Good geological literature, and good
topographical maps are available - The area of interest is extremely rugged with
rivers and streams dissecting the area - The area is totally green and is covered by
trees, shrubs and grass -
40Conclusions
- Large field-mapped anticlines are present
- The anticlines are big enough for world class oil
fields - The geological section has structure, source
rocks, reservoir rocks - A rank wildcat area with great potential
41Current Status/ Next Steps
- Local Honduras company, Rose Dome Energy, S.A.,
was formed - Local office established
- Application for the Atima block was submitted
- Application reserves the 741,000 acre Atima block
for Rose Dome Energy, S.A. - Negotiations will take several months
- Commence field checking as soon as possible
42Recommendations
- Start effort to locate seismic crew
- A portable crew appears best
- Start effort to locate suitable drilling rig
- Plan reconnaissance trip to scout drilling
locations
43Exploration Program
- Phase 1
- Acquire three 100,000 hectare blocks (741,000
total acres, or 3,000 square kilometers) - Field checking of mapped structures and possible
additional mapping on west end of Naranjito
structure - Field work on unmapped anticlines located north
of Atima structure - Review of magnetic data
44Budget Phase 1
- Honduras Block (NW Honduras)
- Purchase acreage 1.25 MM
- Field work .30 MM
- General/Administrative .10 MM
- Total Phase 1 1.65 MM
45Exploration Program
- Phase 2
- Seismic work by portable seismic crews
- Seismic lines over Naranjito and Atima structures
- Prepare first drilling site
46Budget Phase 2
- Honduras Block (NW Honduras)
- Seismic acquisition 4.50 MM
- Acquisition, processing
- and interpretation
- General/Admin .25 MM
- Total Phase 2 4.75 MM
47Exploration Program
- Phase 3
- Drill first well
- Prepare drilling location for second well
- Drill second well
48Budget Phase 3
- Honduras Block (NW Honduras)
- Drill Two Wells 13.6 MM
- Drilling operations
- Road building site prep
- Includes overhead GA
- Total Phase 3 13.6 MM
49Total 12 Month Budget
- Honduras Block (NW Honduras)
- Phase 1 1.65 MM
- Phase 2 4.75 MM
- Phase 3 13.60 MM
- Total Budget 20.0 MM
50Tropical Wet
Area of interest
Tropical Wet and Dry
Map of climate in Central America
50
51Honduras-General
- Petroleum infa-structure is non-existent
- But, road building and related equipment is
available and inexpensive - Labor is plentiful and inexpensive
- Good hotels are available in San Pedro Sula and
Tegucigalpa - Climate is both tropical and sub-tropical
52U.S. Investment Relations
- U.S. nearly 2/3 of foreign investment in Honduras
- CAFTA Free Trade Agreement signed 2006,
eliminates tariffs and barriers to trade and
investment - 2005 signed Millennium Challenge with U.S.
- Approx. 100,000 U.S. citizens visit annually, and
15,000 U.S. residents - Over 150 U.S. companies operate in Honduras
- No tourist visa required for U.S. citizens
- Work and resident visas are easily arranged
53Honduran Economy
- One of poorest and least developed Latin American
countries - 2/3 living in poverty
- Per capita income less than 900
- Economy has diversified over past 20 years with
non-traditional exports and tourism - 2006 GDP estimated at 9.3 billion
- 54 of exports to U.S., 37 imports from U.S.
54Geography People
- Population 7.3 million
- Area 43,278 sq. miles
- Capital Tegucigalpa (1.15MM pop.)
- Terrain Mountainous
- Climate Tropical/subtropical
- People 90 Mesitzo (mixture of Indian and
European) - Literacy Over 76
- Language Spanish, English (2nd language)
- Religion Roman Catholic, Protestant minority
55Government
- Politically very stable
- Democratic Constitutional Republic
- Three branch government
- Executive, Legislative, Judicial
- President elected to single 4 year term
- Legislative - 4 year terms
- Judicial - U.S. style with Supreme Court
- Current President from Liberal Party, Manuel
Zelaya, elected in 2005 - Seventh democratically elected president
56History
- Originally Mayan civiliazation
- Christopher Columbus landed in 1502 and named
Honduras - Spain colonized Honduras
- Gained independence from Spain in 1821
- Series of dictators and military coups, until
mid-1980s when began elections - Devastated by Hurricane Mitch in 1998
- 5,000 dead and 1.5 million displaced