Singapore Petroleum Co, the only oil refiner traded on the city-state’s stock exchange, will explore for oil and gas with China National Offshore Oil Corp in its first venture off the Chinese coast.
Singapore Petroleum will operate and own Block 26/18 in the Pearl River Mouth Basin in the South China Sea, while China National’s Hong Kong-listed unit Cnooc Ltd has the right to take a stake of as much as 51% should a discovery be made, the Chinese company said yesterday in a statement.
Singapore Petroleum, or SPC, has been increasing regional exploration and production since 2000. The agreement will allow the oil refiner to benefit from surging energy demand in the world’s fastest-growing major economy. China’s oil demand will increase 6.1% next year, the International Energy Agency said in a July 13 forecast.
“Gaining entry into China will allow SPC to tap its vast market and further strengthen SPC’s exploration and production portfolio,” Singapore Petroleum chief executive officer Koh Ban Heng said in a separate statement.
The drilling permit will give the company access to an area of about 4,961 sq km. Singapore Petroleum will carry out seismic surveys and drill exploration wells in the area.
The investment won’t have any “material” effect on earnings per share this financial year, the company said.
China is encouraging its oil companies to step up exploration domestically and abroad to supply an economy that expanded 11.9% in the second quarter. Cnooc is the nation’s biggest offshore oil producer.
“There’s great interest in exploring the potential offshore China, so we could keep a continuous flow of new projects for joint exploration of oil and gas resources,” said Zhu Weilin, vice president of Cnooc, in the statement yesterday.
Singapore Petroleum will operate and own Block 26/18 in the Pearl River Mouth Basin in the South China Sea, while China National’s Hong Kong-listed unit Cnooc Ltd has the right to take a stake of as much as 51% should a discovery be made, the Chinese company said yesterday in a statement.
Singapore Petroleum, or SPC, has been increasing regional exploration and production since 2000. The agreement will allow the oil refiner to benefit from surging energy demand in the world’s fastest-growing major economy. China’s oil demand will increase 6.1% next year, the International Energy Agency said in a July 13 forecast.
“Gaining entry into China will allow SPC to tap its vast market and further strengthen SPC’s exploration and production portfolio,” Singapore Petroleum chief executive officer Koh Ban Heng said in a separate statement.
The drilling permit will give the company access to an area of about 4,961 sq km. Singapore Petroleum will carry out seismic surveys and drill exploration wells in the area.
The investment won’t have any “material” effect on earnings per share this financial year, the company said.
China is encouraging its oil companies to step up exploration domestically and abroad to supply an economy that expanded 11.9% in the second quarter. Cnooc is the nation’s biggest offshore oil producer.
“There’s great interest in exploring the potential offshore China, so we could keep a continuous flow of new projects for joint exploration of oil and gas resources,” said Zhu Weilin, vice president of Cnooc, in the statement yesterday.