By Xinhua
Yangon : India’s state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp Videsh Ltd (OVL) has signed production-sharing contracts with Myanmar to explore natural gas in three deep-sea blocks in Myanmar’s western Rakhine offshore areas, official media reported here Wednesday.
According to the contracts signed in Nay Pyi Taw with the state-run Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) during a visit to Myanmar of India’s Petroleum Minister Murli Deora, gas exploration will be conducted at blocks AD-2, AD-3 and AD-9 off the Rakhine coast.
OVL is one of the shareholders with 20 percent in a consortium, headed by South Korea’s Daewoo International Corporation (60 percent), undertaking gas exploration at blocks A-1 and A-3 off the same Rakhine state. The others include South Korea Gas Corporation (10 percent) and Gas Authority of India Ltd (10 percent).
Gas deposits were found at Shwe field and Shwephyu field at block A-1 and Mya field at block A-3 in 2004 and 2005.
In December last year, GAIL of India and the Silver Wave Energy of Singapore agreed with MOGE on contract to conduct oil and gas exploration and production at Block A-7 also in the Rakhine offshore area.
Myanmar has an abundance of natural gas resources, especially in offshore areas. With three large offshore oil and gas fields and 19 onshore ones, Myanmar has proven recoverable reserve of 18.012 trillion cubic feet (TCF) or 510 billion cubic metres (BCM) out of 89.722 TCF or 2.54 trillion cubic metres (TCM) estimated reserve of offshore and onshore gas, experts said.
The country is also estimated to have 3.2 billion barrels of recoverable crude oil reserve, official statistics indicate.
Myanmar figures also show that in fiscal 2005-06, the country produced 7.962 million barrels of crude oil and 11.45 BCM of gas. Gas export during the year went to 9.138 BCM, earning over $1 billion.
In the first three quarters of 2006-07 which ended in March, Myanmar produced 5.822 million barrels of crude oil and 9.819 BCM of gas, the latest statistics indicate, which also shows that gas export during the period went to 8.124 BCM, earning the country $1.24 billion.
Other statistics reveal that foreign investment in Myanmar’s oil and gas sector had reached $2.769 billion by the end of 2006 since the country opened to such investment in late 1988, standing second in the country’s foreign investment after electricity.