UPDATE: CPC Eyes 24.5% In ConocoPhillips' Offshore Indonesia
Block
(Adds comments from CPC, Total's taking a stake)
By Alex Pevzner
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
TAIPEI -(Dow Jones)- Taiwan government-owned refiner CPC Corp. is in talks
with Houston, Texas-based ConocoPhillips (COP) for a stake in an exploration
block offshore Indonesia, two senior officials at CPC's Exploration & Production
Business Division said Tuesday.
CPC may take a 24.5% stake in ConocoPhillips' Arafura Sea Block, the officials
said.
"No seismic tests were done yet, but there are large structures there, so if
we do find something, the potential is big," said one official, adding the
signing of a farming in agreement isn't likely this year.
Both of the CPC officials declined to be named, as the talks haven't been
concluded yet.
Officials at ConocoPhillips couldn't be immediately reached for comment.
CPC has already taken a 24.5% stake in another offshore exploration block of
ConocoPhillips, called Amborip VI, to the north of the Arafura Sea Block, CPC
officials said earlier.
France's Total S.A. (TOT) recently took a 24.5% stake in Amborip VI and may
also take the other 24.5% stake in the Arafura Sea Block, a CPC official said
Tuesday.
Total officials couldn't be reached for comment.
The CPC official said the company didn't pay for the stake rights but will
have to share in drilling costs once drilling starts. Seismic tests for the
Amborip VI block will likely start early next year, the official added.
CPC is exploring for oil and gas in Australia, the U.S., Chad, Libya and
Indonesia and produces oil in Ecuador and Indonesia.
-By Alex Pevzner, Dow Jones Newswires; 8862-2502-2557; alex.pevzner@
dowjones.com
(Isabel Ordonez in Houston contributed to this article)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
11-24-090720ET
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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