NEW DELHI, Dec. 22 State-run Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd. says it will pick up 25 percent participating interest in the southern gas basin of the North Sea.
The oil major joined a consortium led by Australian firm Encore Oil and U.K. company Norwest for consideration of about $20 million.
The move will give the Indian oil major exposure to near-term drilling opportunities in the region, which is among the most explored in the world, said a company spokesman. He said the block 48 1B and 2C are in proximity to a number of gas-producing fields and their associated infrastructure makes even moderate gas reserves very commercial, The Economic Times newspaper reported Friday.
The North Sea contains the majority of Europe's oil reserves and is one of the largest non-OPEC producing regions in the world.
While most of the reserves lie beneath waters belonging to the U.K. and Norway, some fields belong to Denmark, the Netherlands and Germany, a local media report said.
To take forward its interest in prospecting for oil and gas, BPCL has formed an upstream subsidiary, Bharat Petro Resources, with an authorized capital of $220 million, it said.
The company has committed $114 million in four blocks in India and two abroad. It is willing to increase this exposure to $880 million, if and when there is a discovery, said Ashok Sinha, the chairman of BPCL. Sinha said that in India the company has five blocks, of which two are deepwater and three inland.
Most were acquired in national exploration licensing policy-4 and are in partnership with Oil and Natural Gas Corp. and Oil India Ltd. Sinha said.
Copyright 2006 by UPI
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Yes, we all think they have paid Norwest for the option.
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