Offshore staff
(Philippines)- The Philippines' Department of Energy (DoE) has started seismic work on a new oil field in Palawan with an estimated 37.4 MMbbl of oil.
The exploration area of about one million hectares is located northeast of Palawan in the vicinity of Imalaun Island in Barangay San Carlos, Cuyo. The initial cost of exploration is estimated at $24 million.
Energy Undersecretary Guillermo Balce had briefed the Palawan Provincial Board on the exploration in a service control agreement signed in February.
The Cuyo oil field is considered the most promising site in the region for oil and gas reserves, based on the findings of the Philippine Petroleum Resource Assessment Project Study, a joint project with the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad).
Balce said the exploration is still in initial stages but he believes the area has the potential of a huge oil reserve, particularly northwest of Palawan.
The project is jointly undertaken by DoE, Shell Philippines Exploration B.V. (SPEX), Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (Kufpec) Philippines, and South China Resources (SCR).
5/11/2006
