The company, which listed on the Australian Stock Exchange in mid-April, has also released its first half-year financial report, in which it achieved $285,179 in revenue from production at LaSalle Parish. Earnings before interest, tax and depreciation was $188,010.

The impact of being an ASX newcomer caused Pryme to post a loss of $279,168 during the period, managing director Justin Pettett said.

“[The loss] is due to the large amount of costs associated with the first three to four months of operation of the company as a listed entity … being offset by only three months of revenue from oil sold,” he said.

But the outlook was bright, he added.

“We expect over the next six months for revenues to increase primarily from our additional ownership in the LaSalle Parish Project that was secured on July 1 and from scheduled development/step-out drilling of additional wells in this project,” he said.

Later this week, Pryme’s US operator Belle Exploration will spud the Coleman-6 well, following on from success at the SU118-2 well, Pryme’s first oil discovery since joining the project in April.

Coleman-6 will be drilled to a depth of 4500 feet (1371m) in a bid to establish oil production from the Wilcox F-2 sand. This sand was logged and cored productive in the existing Coleman-3 well, 150ft away, but which has yet to be perforated at Routh Point.

Pryme said the new well, was designed to gain structure over Coleman-3 and to penetrate the F-2 sand in a thicker portion of the reservoir, in addition to targeting five secondary objectives.

“If Coleman-6 is successful, it will increase production and revenues for Pryme and enable us to capitalise on these high oil prices,” Pettett said.

“We have an aggressive drilling program planned for LaSalle Parish during the remainder of 2006, with our team currently reviewing two other oil prospects within the project area.”

Pryme said the focus of the future development drilling at the Routh Point field, which in July produced 177 barrels of oil per day, would be to move reserves from the “behind-pipe” category to the proved-producing category to increase daily output.

The company has a 13% working interest, and 9.75% net revenue interest, in the Coleman-6 well.