Eight Companies Bid To Survey For Oil Off Greece
March 02 2012 - 12:05PM
Dow Jones News
Greece received expression of interest from eight companies to
conduct seismic and geological surveys for oil in its western seas,
as Athens seeks resources to cut its energy imports bill, the
energy ministry said Friday.
The bidders are: Norway's TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Co. ASA
(TGS.OS), Fugro Multiclient Services AS, Spectrum Geo Ltd., Dolphin
Geophysical and Petroleum Geo-Services, U.S. company ION
Geophysical Corp. (IO), France's CGG Veritas (CGV) and the U.K.'s
Spec Partners Ltd., a ministry statement said.
The firms are interested in conducting seismic research for
hydrocarbons in the Ionian Sea and the sea south of the island of
Crete.
The evaluation of tenders will be completed by early April, so
that the successful bidder or bidders can proceed immediately with
research and then interpret the data that will arise, the statement
says. The Greek Energy Ministry aims to launch a tender for
exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbons in the area by the end
of the year.
Battered by recession, Greece is dependent more than most
European countries on oil and gas imports. It spends between EUR10
billion and EUR12 billion a year on oil imports, about 5% of its
gross domestic product.
It produces a few thousand barrels of oil a day in the northern
Aegean Sea and consumes about 120 million barrels of oil and 4
billion cubic meters of natural gas annually.
Previously attempts at oil research have been partially
suspended over disputes with Turkey over territorial rights to the
Aegean waters. Greece aims to start the first test drilling for oil
in undisputed waters of the west coast.
Recently, Noble Energy Inc. (NBL) announced five natural-gas
discoveries near Cyprus, building on a string of successes in the
eastern Mediterranean. The gas finds are estimated at 33 trillion
cubic feet.
-By Nektaria Stamouli, Dow Jones Newswires; +30 210 373 1775;
nektaria.stamouli@dowjones.com
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