Prospex Energy has announced first gas production at the freshly developed onshore Selva field in the Po Valley region of Northern Italy.
The London-listed energy investment specialist has confirmed the start of production from the The Podere Maiar-1 project after the site was signed off by regulators and the Italian government this week.
Flooding in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy had delayed its approval, but it has now been shown the green light two months after it was connected to the country’s energy grid in May.
Gas will be sold into the domestic Italian market under an 18-month supply agreement with energy giant BP.
The new field expands its European portfolio to two sites, with Prospex holding a 37 per cent interest in the project.
The remaining 63 per cent is owned by Po Valley Operations who will oversee production at the site.
Prospex trades on the FTSE AIM All-Share with shares trading at 8.5p per share yesterday, with the company performing robustly amid challenging investment conditions
It will update shareholders in the coming months on the new project’s flow rate for gas production and its full potential – with Prospex looking to develop additional wells at the site.
Mark Routh, Prospex’s chief executive, said: “This is a key step in the company’s strategy to become a diversified energy producer with multiple producing assets principally in lower risk, onshore European markets with ready access to infrastructure.”
