In August 2011, BioProspect increased its shareholding in...

In August 2011, BioProspect increased its shareholding in Frontier Gasfields, a privately owned Australian oil and gas explorer to 50%, with an option to increase its interest by a further 25% contingent on the commencement of an exploration well at SC55.

Frontier is involved in a number of oil and gas projects under development, focused mainly on the Philippines.

SC52

Frontier holds an 80% interest in Service Contract (SC) 52, an onshore oil and gas block located in the Cagayan Valley of Luzon Island, the Philippines. Frontier's interest is subject to entry into assignment documentation with E.F. Durkee & Associates, Inc and approval from the Philippines Department of Energy (DOE).

The current focus of Frontier activities is on Nassiping-2, an existing well containing a previously discovered but untested gas discovery. Gas samples taken in coordination with the DOE have shown that the gas is predominantly methane and thermogenic in origin, with indications of an active gas-bearing section.

Nassiping-2 was drilled by PNOC (Philippine National Oil Company) and Petro-Canada in 1984 and penetrated a substantial, gas-bearing limestone section. Rising gas prices and the close proximity of the national power grid have boosted the potential of this project as a medium-scale gas to electricity project.

SC69

Frontier holds a 15% interest in SC69, an offshore block located within the Visayan Basin of the Philippines. The interest is subject to the completion of assignment and assumption documentation with Trans-Asia and NorAsian PH and approval from the DOE.

The operator of SC69, Otto Energy (ASX: OEL), announced on June 23, 2011 the acquisition of high quality 3D seismic data. In its announcement, Otto stated that "We look forward to maturing the Lampos and Lampos South prospects following the interpretation of these new seismic data over the coming months".


50-75% holding in all this plus their promising biotech makes the current market cap look a little small