OREANDA-NEWS. The State of Israel’s Petroleum Commissioner awarded Zion Oil & Gas, Inc. (ZN) the Megiddo-Jezreel Petroleum Exploration License No. 401, on December 3, 2013.

License Details
The Megiddo-Jezreel License covers an area of approximately 400,000 dunam (400 square kilometers or 98,842 acres), of onshore land south and west of Zion’s existing Jordan Valley License. The new License has a three-year primary term, commencing December 3, 2013 and going through December 2, 2016. The License may be further extended for additional one-year periods up to a maximum of seven years as provided by the Israeli Petroleum Law.

Drilling Prospect
Under the terms of the Megiddo-Jezreel License, the Company is to identify and submit a drilling prospect in the license area by July 1, 2015; enter into a contract for the drilling of such prospect by October 1, 2015; and begin drilling or “spud” a well to a minimum proposed total depth of approximately 4,000 meters (~ 13,125 feet) by December 1, 2015.

Milestones
Additional terms of the License require Zion to attain various geological and geophysical milestones during the primary term, including reprocessing and acquiring additional seismic data, all of which should be achievable before the stated deadlines. The new license award follows the Company’s submission in April of 2013 of a detailed and extensive application proposal seeking the Petroleum Exploration License in the Megiddo-Jezreel Valley area.

John Brown, Zion’s CEO, said, "This is a key milestone in Zion’s future exploration success. We are committed to stay the course and fulfill Zion’s vision to render assistance to the Jewish people and Nation of Israel and to aid them in the Restoration of the Land by providing the oil and gas necessary to help the People of Israel maintain their political and economic independence."

Victor G. Carrillo, Zion’s President and Chief Operating Officer, said, "Being awarded the 98,842 acre Megiddo-Jezreel Valley License is a critically important step for Zion’s future exploration efforts. We have many prerequisite steps before we can drill our next deep exploratory well but we plan to get to that point as expeditiously as possible. This new area appears to have all of the geologic ingredients of an active petroleum system with good potential."