Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07TRIPOLI978
2007-11-20 16:21:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Tripoli
Cable title:
EXXONMOBIL ADDS NEW OFFSHORE ACREAGE
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UNCLAS TRIPOLI 000978
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR NEA/MAG; COMMERCE FOR MASON; ENERGY FOR ERICKSON
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON EINV EPET ENRG LY
SUBJECT: EXXONMOBIL ADDS NEW OFFSHORE ACREAGE
UNCLAS TRIPOLI 000978
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR NEA/MAG; COMMERCE FOR MASON; ENERGY FOR ERICKSON
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON EINV EPET ENRG LY
SUBJECT: EXXONMOBIL ADDS NEW OFFSHORE ACREAGE
1. (SBU) ExxonMobil has clinched a deal with Libya's National
Oil Corporation to increase its acreage in the country by about
fifty percent. The soon-to-be announced deal is for a giant
offshore bloc adjacent to another it secured in the December
2006 Exploration and Production Sharing Agreement (EPSA) bidding
round. The latest move marks another step for ExxonMobil
towards regaining a major share in the Libyan market, which it
dominated before it left the country in 1986.
2. (SBU) Econoff learned on November 20 that ExxonMobil will
announce soon that it was awarded today a vast new offshore area
to explore for hydrocarbon resources. The area in question
covers more than 2.5 million square acres, and is located
roughly 100 miles off the central Libyan coast. The new area is
said to be in deep water, requiring world-class deepwater
operations that are performed by only a handful of international
oil companies. The parcel, referred to as Area 21, is adjacent
to another identically-sized concession awarded to ExxonMobil as
part of the Exploration and Production Sharing (EPSA) bid round
process that concluded in December 2006. ExxonMobil had
previously secured another large offshore parcel (area 44),
located along the Egyptian-Libyan maritime border, in the EPSA
bid round that concluded in October 2005.
3. (SBU) Post has learned that the workplan for this area will
be substantial, to include 4,000km of 2D seismic, 2,000km of 3D
seismic and the drilling of at least one well. Terms of a
signing bonus, production share and other features of the deal
were not disclosed.
4. (SBU) Comment: While significant, particularly in terms of
the quantity of more labor-intensive and costly 3D seismic, this
set of requirements is significantly smaller in scope than that
attendant to ExxonMobil's winning bid in the most recent EPSA
round in December 2006 (20,000km of 2D, 1,000km of 3D, 4 wells,
and a $10 million signing bonus). The formal EPSA bid rounds
have become increasingly competitive since they were inaugurated
in January 2005. The less demanding requirements for the Area
21 deal underscore the potential advantages for IOC's of
concluding deals outside the EPSA rubric. Securing Area 21also
places ExxonMobil in the top tier of offshore operators in Libya
and marks the company's return to the head of the pack in a
market it first opened to oil and gas operations with the
discovery of Libya's first viable oilfield in 1960. End
comment.
STEVENS
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR NEA/MAG; COMMERCE FOR MASON; ENERGY FOR ERICKSON
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON EINV EPET ENRG LY
SUBJECT: EXXONMOBIL ADDS NEW OFFSHORE ACREAGE
1. (SBU) ExxonMobil has clinched a deal with Libya's National
Oil Corporation to increase its acreage in the country by about
fifty percent. The soon-to-be announced deal is for a giant
offshore bloc adjacent to another it secured in the December
2006 Exploration and Production Sharing Agreement (EPSA) bidding
round. The latest move marks another step for ExxonMobil
towards regaining a major share in the Libyan market, which it
dominated before it left the country in 1986.
2. (SBU) Econoff learned on November 20 that ExxonMobil will
announce soon that it was awarded today a vast new offshore area
to explore for hydrocarbon resources. The area in question
covers more than 2.5 million square acres, and is located
roughly 100 miles off the central Libyan coast. The new area is
said to be in deep water, requiring world-class deepwater
operations that are performed by only a handful of international
oil companies. The parcel, referred to as Area 21, is adjacent
to another identically-sized concession awarded to ExxonMobil as
part of the Exploration and Production Sharing (EPSA) bid round
process that concluded in December 2006. ExxonMobil had
previously secured another large offshore parcel (area 44),
located along the Egyptian-Libyan maritime border, in the EPSA
bid round that concluded in October 2005.
3. (SBU) Post has learned that the workplan for this area will
be substantial, to include 4,000km of 2D seismic, 2,000km of 3D
seismic and the drilling of at least one well. Terms of a
signing bonus, production share and other features of the deal
were not disclosed.
4. (SBU) Comment: While significant, particularly in terms of
the quantity of more labor-intensive and costly 3D seismic, this
set of requirements is significantly smaller in scope than that
attendant to ExxonMobil's winning bid in the most recent EPSA
round in December 2006 (20,000km of 2D, 1,000km of 3D, 4 wells,
and a $10 million signing bonus). The formal EPSA bid rounds
have become increasingly competitive since they were inaugurated
in January 2005. The less demanding requirements for the Area
21 deal underscore the potential advantages for IOC's of
concluding deals outside the EPSA rubric. Securing Area 21also
places ExxonMobil in the top tier of offshore operators in Libya
and marks the company's return to the head of the pack in a
market it first opened to oil and gas operations with the
discovery of Libya's first viable oilfield in 1960. End
comment.
STEVENS