Dominion gains extension for Tanzania block

April 5, 2011
Tanzania’s Ministry of Energy and Minerals has approved a one-year extension to the initial exploration period for deepwater block 7.

Offshore staff

LONDON -- Tanzania’s Ministry of Energy and Minerals has approved a one-year extension to the initial exploration period for deepwater block 7.

The extension removes any obligation on the part of operator Dominion Petroleum to relinquish any portion of block 7 until May 2012. It also gives the company more time to fully evaluate the acreage before a mandatory 50% relinquishment at the close of the initial period.

Late last year, Dominion acquired 3D seismic on the block and is presently processing the data in full while interpreting the “fasttrack” volume.

The survey was initially devised to focus on the large Alpha prospect, but the fasttrack volume has led to identification of other prospects of similar scale.

Final processing is likely to be completed in early May. Dominion may choose to acquire new 2D or additional 3D data this year in the block to mature some of the latest identified leads and prospects.

A competent persons report prepared last September by Energy Resource Consultants confirmed a mean prospective resource of 7 tcf of gas, or 1.1 Bbbl of oil, for the Alpha prospect alone. But recent drilling results by other companies in offshore blocks to the south have materially impacted the prospectivity of block 7, Dominion believes.

04/05/2011