Warrego Energy Limited, a private Aberdeen-based oil & gas company, has successfully closed phase one of a two part funding program for the onshore West Erregulla-2 appraisal well in Western Australia.

The company has secured private equity funding to complete ongoing pre-appraisal engineering, environmental assessment and technical studies prior to drilling an appraisal well on its West Erregulla discovery on license EP469. Exploration Permit EP469 was awarded to Warrego Energy after reaching agreement on Native Title with the Amangu aboriginal community.

"We are delighted to have secured funding to advance the appraisal programme and to build up our corporate and technical teams in Aberdeen and Perth," said Dennis Donald, managing director of Warrego. "This is an exciting time to be taking gas to market in the Perth Basin and we anticipate further important announcements in the near future."

West Erregulla is a tight gas discovery in the North Perth Basin of Western Australia which tested gas when it was drilled in 1990. Warrego Energy intends to employ innovative drilling and completions techniques and technologies, used successfully in the UK and North America, to exploit this substantial tight gas resource. Mid-case gas-in-place volumes for West Erregulla are independently estimated at 185 bcf. Warrego' plans to develop the West Erregulla field with an appraisal well scheduled for early 2012 and first commercial gas in 2014.