Offshore staff
NAMIBIA -- Mitsui & Co. Ltd. has acquired a 15% interest in oil and gas exploration blocks offshore Namibia from BHP Billiton.
The acquired interest is for blocks 2813A and 2814B in Northern Block and block 2914A and adjacent acreage in Southern Block 220 km (722 mi) off the southwest coast of Namibia. Decisions regarding further exploration for hydrocarbons in the Southern Block will be made following analysis of 3D seismic data.
Mitsui plans to participate in newly developing projects in the Atlantic market, where demand for energy is expected to grow. The company previously acquired an interest in the Equatorial Guinea LNG Project. The company's investment in Namibia marks the first time for a Japanese company to participate in exploration licenses in that country.
Mitsui says it hopes to meet growing demand for energy in the Atlantic market by discovering and commercializing energy resources, in cooperation with BHP Billiton, a long time partner in the Australian North West Shelf LNG Project, and The Petroleum Oil and Gas Corp. of South Africa (Pty.) Ltd. (PetroSA), which has experience exploring and developing oil and gas related projects in Africa.
BHP Billiton operates the two offshore blocks with 75% interest. Partners include Mitsui Atlantic Energy B.V. with 15% interest and PetroSA with 10% interest.
11/22/06
