London (Platts)--29Jan2013/712 am EST/1212 GMT
BP said Tuesday its plans to drill exploration wells in western Libya later this year are under review as a result of the attack by Islamist militants on its Algerian gas plant two weeks ago. The oil major is still committed to drilling the Ghadames block in northwestern Libya but the timing of the work may be delayed as a result of the attack on its In Amenas gas plant, a company spokesman said. "We are reviewing our security across the region and any impact that security situation may have on drilling plans, but no decision [on drilling plans] has been taken yet," a BP spokesman said. BP's Ghadames blocks lies close to the Libyan and Tunisian border and is some 200 km (124 miles) north of In Amenas gas plant in eastern Algeria. Article continues below...Platts 6th Annual Crude Oil SummitNew Supply, New Demand and the New World Order: May 13-14, London, UKPlatts Crude Oil Summit 2013 has assembled influential leaders and foremost experts from the international oil community to evaluate and debate the industry's evolving landscape and explores how the 'new supply' and 'new demand' era is changing the game for all involved.
BP said Tuesday its plans to drill exploration wells in western Libya later this year are under review as a result of the attack by Islamist militants on its Algerian gas plant two weeks ago. The oil major is still committed to drilling the Ghadames block in northwestern Libya but the timing of the work may be delayed as a result of the attack on its In Amenas gas plant, a company spokesman said. "We are reviewing our security across the region and any impact that security situation may have on drilling plans, but no decision [on drilling plans] has been taken yet," a BP spokesman said. BP's Ghadames blocks lies close to the Libyan and Tunisian border and is some 200 km (124 miles) north of In Amenas gas plant in eastern Algeria.
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Platts Crude Oil Summit 2013 has assembled influential leaders and foremost experts from the international oil community to evaluate and debate the industry's evolving landscape and explores how the 'new supply' and 'new demand' era is changing the game for all involved.
The company said last year it hoped to resume oil and gas exploration in western Libya by late 2013 after agreeing to return to the country following the 2011 uprising against Moammar Qadhafi. BP signed an exploration and production deal with NOC in May 2007 worth at least $900 million for the onshore Ghadames and offshore Sirte areas. Covering a total 54,000 square km (20,849 square miles), BP has billed the work as biggest exploration commitment in its 100-year history, with the North Ghadames acreage alone the same size as Kuwait or equal to more than 2,000 Gulf of Mexico deepwater blocks. Under the deal, BP agreed to shoot 5,500 km of 2D seismic data and 30,000 sq km of 3D seismic data and drill 17 exploration wells. ALGERIAN RESTART In Algeria, the spokesman said it is still "too early" to begin planning the restart of the In Amenas gas plant, a week after Algerian forces ended a bloody hostage crisis at the desert facility. "It's a matter of going in safely and we are still dealing with the issue of identifying staff," the spokesman said. He said BP also has no current plans to return the 43 staff who were evacuated from various locations across Algeria after the attack. BP on Monday identified three of its four employees killed in the attack. The gas plant produces around 9 billion cubic meters/year of gas, about 11.5% of the country's annual total of some 78 Bcm.--Robert Perkins, robert_perkins@platts.com--Edited by Jonathan Dart, jonathan_dart@platts.com
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