South Sudan has suspended its preliminary oil and gas bidding round that was set for March due to Covid-19 which has spread to neighbouring countries such as Kenya and Ethiopia. The country had been set to offer 14 oil blocks in the northern oil fields.
Axxis Geo Solution has announced a contract extension totalling seven vessel months for a 3D ocean bottom node (OBN) survey in the Middle East. Work will now continue into the second quarter of 2020.
Australia’s Victoria state has lifted a ban on onshore conventional gas drilling from 2021 after a three-year investigation, which found that an onshore conventional gas industry would not compromise the state’s environmental and agricultural credentials. The state barred onshore conventional drilling in 2014 and extended the moratorium in 2017 to June 2020. At the same time it permanently banned fracking and all coal seam gas exploration.
SeaBird’s client has cancelled the two OBN surveys off West Africa due to the Covid-19 outbreak. The vessel Eagle Explorer has mobilized and is ready for work, and the company said that it expects to be ‘made whole’ on the contract.
The Lebanese Petroleum Administration has postponed the closing date for its second offshore exploration licensing round in response to the spread of Covid-19 worldwide. The new deadline is 1 June 2020.
Brazil has suspended its 17th Bidding Round for oil and natural gas exploration and production, under the concession regime, which was scheduled for this year.
One petroleum exploration permit has been granted for New Zealand’s Block Offer 2018. Todd Corporation has been awarded PEP 60573, which covers an area of 105km2, east of Inglewood, in onshore Taranaki. Block Offer 2018 was restricted to the onshore Taranaki region, covering 2188 km2.
