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Trio Petroleum (NYSE:TPET) +3.3% pre-market Friday after saying it secured an option to acquire a 20% stake in a low-sulfur, heavy-oil development project at Asphalt Ridge in Utah.
Trio (TPET) said it entered into the option to acquire up to 20% working interest in Phase 1 with the payment of $2M, as well as an option to acquire a 20% stake in Phase 2; on December 29, the company funded the first $200K payment.
The project is estimated by an independent reserve engineering firm to be one of the largest heavy oil deposits in North America outside of Canada, the company said.
The area has been underdeveloped for decades, largely due to lease ownership issues and the definition of heavy oil falling under mining regulations in Utah.
Separately, Trio (TPET) said it restarted the McCool Ranch oil field in California, which it acquired in October.
The company also said it began production at two wells, its HV-1 confirmation well and its HV-3A discovery well in the South Salinas project.
Read More: Trio Petroleum to buy 20% stake in Utah heavy oil project (NYSE:TPET)