Thunderbird to Farm Out Wyoming Oil Acreage

Thunderbird Energy will farm out roughly 50% of its Wyoming oil project acreage in Weston County to Ascent Exploration.

The project is located in a prolific oil and gas-producing area of the Eastern Powder River Basin, with a number of conventional oil and natural gas targets in the Dakota and Minnelusa formations.

As per the agreement Ascent can earn an 85% working interest down to the Dakota formation in the initial earn in a land block of roughly 1,300 acres by paying 100% of the costs to drill and complete an initial Dakota test well.

On completion of the initial test well Ascent will have to exercise its option within six months to fund 100% of the cost of a second Dakota test well to earn an 85% interest in an additional earn in land block of roughly 1,500 acres.

Ascent will not earn any interest in the deeper Minnelusa formation.

The initial test well must be drilled by 1 April 2011.