East Irish Sea Opportunities

Lir Resources is building a portfolio of high value development opportunities within the East Irish Sea Basin and has identified the most attractive licenses which it plans to acquire via license application or farm-in.

Lir’s activities are focused on the underdeveloped gas resources in East Irish Sea Basin which lies between the Lancashire and Cumbria coasts to the east and the Isle of Man to the west. Hydrocarbons have been identified from rocks adjacent to the East Irish Sea Coast for over a century, however, it wasn’t until 1974, with the discovery of the giant Morecambe Field that the area became a focus for elevated gas E&P activity, targeting the prolific Triassic fluvial and aeolian reservoirs. By the 1990s, multiple new fields were being discovered and produced, transforming the Basin into a major UK gas province.

However, several smaller fields were left undeveloped by the gas majors, choosing to prioritise the development of larger and more profitable fields, globally, over the ‘small pool’ accumulations in the East Irish Sea.

Oil and gas fields located in the East Irish Sea and adjacent onshore areas.

Stacked Play Opportunities

Lir's strategy is to target multiple stacked reservoirs within the same licence. The primary reservoirs are:

Triassic Sandstones

  • Triassic Sandstones have been the mainstay of East Irish Sea production, however several substantive unexploited discoveries and undrilled prospects remain. Lir Resources plans to drill and produce the best of these.

Permian Sandstones

  • Studies by Lir show that the Permian Collyhurst Sandstone has high potential, enhanced when overlying charged Triassic reservoirs. Already considerable production rates could be elevated by stimulation. Several select prospects and areas of interest are targeted by Lir, and ownership of this acreage will be secured by licence application to the UK Oil & Gas Authority or farm-ins to licence holders. Lir is active in both approaches.

Carboniferous Sandstones

  • Lying beneath the Permo-Triassic section is a thick sequence of Upper and Middle Carboniferous gas bearing sandstones. As with the Permian Sandstones, production rates will be raised by stimulation.