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In
the next three months, Australian oil and gas exploration
firm Otto Energy Ltd. will be announcing its schedule for
the drilling of oil wells in the country, including the Cabilao,
Loon and Argao, Cebu prospects.
The
Australian oil exploration company owns NorAsian Energy Ltd.
which conducted the controversial 2D and 3D seismic surveys
off Bohol sea.
Otto
Energy is set to drill three wells in three service contracts
awarded by the government which will be funded partly by the
company's $100-million proceeds from another oil field.
Alex
Parks, chief executive officer of Otto Energy, said in an
email, that the company would drill one well at the Bohol-Cebu
Strait off Cabilao Island in the first half of 2009.
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Two
other exploration wells will be drilled at Service Contract
(SC) 50 covering the Calauit oil field and SC 55 which
covers the Marantao prospect in western Palawan.
"We
plan to drill one well in each of SC 50, 51 (Bohol-Cebu)
and 55 before the middle of 2009. We are actively talking
to rig companies and hope to announce drilling dates
by July this year," Parks said.
He
said Otto Energy would fund its planned exploration
wells through a combination of its share of profits
from the Galoc oil field project, or approximately $50
million each in 2008 and 2009, and equity from farm-in
partners.
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Otto
Energy holds 31.38 percent in Galoc Production Co., lead operator
of the Galoc oil field (under SC 14), which is expected to
release the first oil production by next month.
Otto
Energy, through its subsidiary NorAsian Energy, said the Cabilao-Argao
prospect or SC 51 could is confirmed to contain of up to 270
million barrels (MMbbls) of recoverable oil in conventional
sandstone reservoirs.
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