Chevron and Indian explorer join New Zealand oil, gas search

TAG Oil

09/12/2014 05:14

WELLINGTON, Dec 9 (Reuters) - New Zealand awarded 15 oil and 
gas exploration licences on Tuesday, with U.S. giant Chevron and 
India's ONGC Videsh joining the hunt in the South Pacific 
country for the first time. 
    Chevron  CVX.N  is partnering with Norway's Statoil  STL.OL  
to explore three prospects off the lightly explored south-east 
coast of the North Island. 
    Statoil is already in New Zealand and has been awarded a 
further offshore block in its own right at the top northwest 
coast of the North Island. 
    The Indian government controlled ONGC Videsh Ltd  ONGCVD.UL  
has made its first foray into New Zealand with one offshore 
exploration permit in the Taranaki Basin, in the same region as 
several commercially successful oil and gas fields. 
    "New players continue to enter our market, and existing 
players cement and expand their work here," Energy Minister 
Simon Bridges said in a statement. 
    The government has changed the rules for the tendering and 
awarding of exploration permits to encourage foreign companies 
to explore the southern oceans around the country. 
    The awarding of the permits, which are open for between 10 
and 15 years, comes at a time when major oil companies such as 
BP  BP.L , Shell  RDSa.L , Exxon Mobil  XOM.N , and Total 
 TOTF.PA  are cutting back on exploration, laying off staff and 
selling assets globally to cope with sliding oil prices.  
    The permit recipients have committed to various work 
programmes ranging from geological and seismic surveys through 
to drilling exploration wells. 
    Six of the permits awarded were for onshore blocks, 
including two on the west coast of the South Island, while nine 
were for offshore blocks. Of the total, seven permits were for 
exploration in the Taranaki region.  
    Other isolated finds have been made in the east of the North 
Island and the top of the South Island, but have not proved to 
be economic. 
    Austrian oil major OMV  OMVV.VI , which already has 
interests in commercial fields in New Zealand, has extended its 
involvement with two offshore permits. 
    Other permits were awarded to established explorer and 
producer Canada's TAG Oil  TAO.TO , a joint venture of local 
Todd Exploration and Australia's Beach Petroleum  BPT.AX , New 
Zealand-owned Petrochem Ltd and British-owned Mosman Oil and Gas 
Ltd  MSMN.L . 
    A small New Zealand-based private company New Endeavour 
Resources Ltd, which wants to attract other investors, has 
entered the sector for the first time with an offshore permit. 
 
 (Reporting by Gyles Beckford; Editing by Himani Sarkar) 
 ((Gyles.Beckford@thomsonreuters.com; +64 4 802 7977 ; Reuters 
Messaging: gyles.beckford.reuters.com@reuters.net)) 
 
Keywords: NEWZEALAND PETROLEUM/PERMITS