BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN:Brunei National Petroleum Company Sdn Bhd (PetroleumBRUNEI) has officially been awarded an onshore block in Myanmar after having signed a contract with Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise Pte Ltd (IGE) yesterday, Brudirect reported.
The signing of the Production Sharing Contract (PSC) was carried out at Myanmar’s Grand Amara Hotel in Nay Pyi Taw yesterday where it was witnessed by Pehin Datu Singamanteri Colonel (Rtd) Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Awg Hj Md Yasmin Hj Umar, Brunei’s Minister of Energy at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and U Zay Yar Aung, Union Minister at Myanmar’s Ministry of Energy.
The signatory for PetroleumBRUNEI was its Managing Director and CEO, Dato Paduka Hj Matsatejo Sokiaw, while MOGE Managing Director U Myo Myint Oo and IGE Managing Director Than Win Swe signed on behalf of their respective organisation.
PetroleumBRUNEI was awarded Block EP-1, the onshore Kyaukkyi-Mindon area on November 19 2013 after participating in the 2013 Myanmar Onshore Bidding Round. The onshore block itself is located two hundred and fifty kilometer north of Yangon, covering an area of one thousand one hundred and thirty five square kilometer.
Brunei Minister of Energy said “In carrying out its operations in EP-1, PetroleumBRUNEI is committed to ensure high safety, environmental standards and to work alongside the local business community. PetroleumBRUNEI is committed to fulfill its obligations under the PSC to explore the block diligently and invest in any commercial discoveries”
Speaking to the Borneo Bulletin from Myanmar, Pehin Dato Hj Md Yasmin highlighted “PetroleumBRUNEI worked very hard for this. This is an international dealing. A number of international companies were bidding for this, not just from the region but also all the way from Europe. All the hard work from the people in PetroleumBRUNEI helped to do this”
He went on to explain that following this signing, PetroleumBRUNEI will be carrying out all the exploration activities in the block, including a seismic survey, environmental studies and assessments.
“The next two years will be for exploration. This will start as early as in the next five to six months”.
PetroleumBRUNEI will be managing the contracts, some of which will go to international contractors while there will also be opportunities for “capable Bruneian contractors”, he shared.
“There will be a number of tenders that some Bruneian companies can participate in” he said. Asked what this means for the Sultanate, the minister said, “It will generate income for PetroleumBRUNEI”
“We now have the opportunity to do business here,” he said, noting that the location of the block is very strategic. “The Mekong Delta has a very dynamic economy that is moving quite fast. It is a gateway to the big economies of China and India”
“Besides Myanmar, we have other investments in offshore fields in Sarawak, Malaysia and a shale gas project in Canada” said the minister in response to a question on other potential projects for PetroleumBRUNEI abroad.