Talisman gains 10 UK blocks

Offshore staff

ABERDEEN --Talisman Energy has secured all 10 blocks that it applied for under the UK's 24th licensing round. Two of the blocks are traditional exploration licenses close to the company's North Sea production strongholds of Montrose-Arbroath and Balmoral.

Of the others, four are adjacent to the company's frontier acreage, awarded under the 23rd round, and all contain mid-size to large exploration targets close to infrastructure. Blocks 214/2, 214/3, 214/4b, and 216/28 lie in deeper waters in the Atlantic margin, and provide higher risk, but also high reward opportunities.

"We see a lot of running room in the North Sea, as evidenced by Talisman's nine field developments currently under way in the UK and two in Norway," said CEO Jim Buckee.

02/08/2007