Argentina Announces $150 Million Offshore Oil Exploration Project
Thursday August 28th, 2008 / 0h54
BUENOS AIRES -(Dow Jones)- Companies from Argentina, Chile and Spain will explore Argentine waters for oil, a government minister said late Wednesday. Argentina's state-run energy firm, Enarsa, Chile's state-owned oil company, Enap Sipetrol, and Spain's Repsol-YPF will begin exploring within months for offshore oil, Planning Minister Julio De Vido said. "This will be the first perforation in 30 years in Argentine waters," De Vido said. The firms will invest $150 million in the project. Enap, Repsol and Enarsa are equal partners in the project, although Enarsa will put up funds only if the sites prove commercially viable. Plans for the project were first announced in 2006, but a lack of available offshore drilling rigs caused delays. The consortium will use a custom-built Ocean Scepter rig, scheduled to arrive in September, to search for oil. The exploration zone is comprised of two areas. One is the E2 area just north of the mouth of the Strait of Magellan, near the Chilean border. Exploration of this area will be led by Enap. This area comprises a 14,000 square-kilometer zone in waters off southern Argentina's Santa Cruz province and the Strait of Magellan. The other, dubbed the Aurora Project, is located in the San Jorge gulf area, near the province of Chubut, where exploration will be led by Repsol-YPF. Exploration of the first area will begin with two holes, each drilled to a depth of 1,600 meters. The second site will begin with four holes each drilled to a depth of 2,500 meters. If either or both of the sites prove successful, the platform will remain for one year to engage in further perforation. "After 30 years Argentina will have platforms exploring for oil off its coast," Argentine President Cristina Fernandez said in a speech late Wednesday. "It's a pity that Argentina abandoned such important exploration for so long." -By Taos Turner, Dow Jones Newswires; 5411-4590-2421; taos.turner@dowjones.com Click here to go to Dow Jones NewsPlus, a web front page of today's most important business and market news, analysis and commentary: http://www.djnewsplus.com/al?rnd=BoRMfymB3IV0Cliy7PnazQ%3D%3D. You can use this link on the day this article is published and the following day.
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