State-owned Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) is expected to announce the results by the end of August for its Altrush-3 appraisal well in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq. 

Taqa, the operator of the Atrush block submitted a field development plan to the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) Ministry of Natural Resources in early-May and is awaiting approval, according to a 19 August statement from Canada’s Shamaran Petroleum, a partner at the block.

In the meantime it continues work on its phase-one development of the block, which includes processing 3D seismic surveys and the drilling of the Atrush-4 appraisal/development well before the end of September.

An independent evaluation of the block by Canada’s McDaniel & Associates estimates the 269-square kilometre Atrush block contains some 47.85 million barrels of crude oil and 124.07 million cubic feet of natural gas.