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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for January delivery gained 63 cents to $57.99 on the New York Merc, while Brent for February gained $1.29 to $64.69 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $21.45 to WTI ($36.54), up from a discount of $17.30. Natural gas for January gained six cents to $2.83. The TSX energy index added 1.13 points to close at 187.96.

Turkey-focused Valeura Energy Inc. (VLE) rose 43 cents to $3.18 on 5.28 million shares, after releasing another production test result from the Yamalik-1 deep well at its Banarli project. In the second of four planned production tests, Yamalik-1 produced 0.8 million cubic feet of gas over a 24-hour test period. The well also produced this much gas in the first 24-hour test. Since Valeura released the first test result two weeks ago, its stock has climbed to today's $3.18 from 79 cents. Investors are keeping an eye on Yamalik-1, because it is Valeura's first deep well. The company entered Turkey in 2010 and has since been producing from shallow wells only. In April, 2013, it acquired Banarli in the hope of reaching a "deeply buried" gas and hydrocarbon potential. Valeura took three years to find a financing partner for a deep drilling program, then finally in May, 2016, Norway's Statoil agreed to farm in up to a 50-per-cent interest in the deep rights to Banarli. Statoil paid Valeura $21-million (U.S.) cash and is now spending $23-million (U.S.) to drill and test Yamalik-1. The companies have begun planning a follow-up delineation drilling program that will begin in July, 2018, but that program will depend on the results of the final two Yamalik-1 tests. Statoil expects to finish the tests in early January.

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