JKX Oil & Gas plc reported the award of contracts between its wholly owned subsidiary, Poltava Petroleum Co., and Schlumberger to perform fracture stimulation operations on Well #R103 in the Rudenkovskoye license, Poltava, Ukraine.

The well was drilled in 2010 to a total measured depth of 15,055 ft (4,589 m) including a sub-horizontal component of 3,280 ft (1,000 m) in a low permeability, gas-bearing Devonian sandstone unit. Detailed geological and engineering studies have concluded that the well will benefit from a multi-stage fracture treatment.

In 2011, Schlumberger won a competitive bid to design the R103 multi-stage frac. Following a further tender process, additional contracts have now been signed with several other Schlumberger divisions to source the chemicals, materials, equipment, and services necessary to perform a nine-stage frac operation.

Pre-frac preparations on the well, which include the replacement of the liner, are well advanced, with the injectivity test scheduled to be completed in the 3Q of 2012. It has been agreed to perform the bulk of the frac operation in the 2Q of 2013 in recognition of both the complex logistics sourcing and mobilization of long-lead items into Ukraine and the adverse climatic conditions of the Ukrainian winter.