Reposted from: Andina Agencia Peruana de Noticias
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Oil exploration in the Amazon jungle. Photo: Andina/Internet.
- Lima, Feb. 27 (ANDINA).- Compania Espanola de Petroleos (Cepsa), Spain’s second-largest oil company, bought stakes in two oil and gas exploration blocks from Irish Pan Andean Resources in the Ucayali BAsin south of Pucallpa, in the Peruvian jungle. Cepsa will eventually assume operatorship of the Blocks and acquire a 60 percent working interest in Block 114 and a 70 percent working interest in Block 131, once it has obtained the required regulatory approvals from Perupetro (the Peruvian government agency responsible for promoting private investment in the hydrocarbons sector).Activity during the exploration period on Blocks 114 and 131, measuring 7,200 km2 and 10,000 km2, respectively, will include, during the initial phases, the performance of 2D seismic acquisition to identify possible structures existing in the subsoil, and subsequently the drilling of exploration wells. Cepsa embarked on its exploration activity in Peru last year when it signed an agreement with ConocoPhillips to acquire a 35 percent stake in Block 104 in the Maranon Basin. Afterwards, the company entered into a farm-in deal with the Canadian firm Loon Energy to acquire a 80 percent working interest in Block 127 in the same basin. As a result of these last two agreements signed with Pan Andean, Cepsa will expand its upstream portfolio and enhance its presence in Peru. These new Blocks, which will be operated by Cepsa, are located in Peru’s central Amazonian region, an area of considerable ecological value. The Spanish company holds interests in other acreages with similar features and, in an effort to ensure environmentally-sound and responsible operations, has put into effect in each of them a broad program of measures in conjunction with local authorities and indigenous populations , chiefly targeted at avoiding any adverse impacts on the environment and, consequently, its biodiversity. As part of its environmental strategy in ecologically-sensitive areas, Cepsa consistently identifies and evaluates the possible effects associated with its activities.
