Houston-based
Marathon Oil and Austrian energy group OMV returned seven offshore oil and gas
exploration licences to Croatia, an OMV spokesman said on Wednesday, as a slump
in oil prices forces the oil industry to cut investment. Croatia, hoping to
boost its oil and gas sector, had awarded the licences to a consortium formed
by the two companies in January, with Marathon as the operator holding a
60-percent stake and OMV the rest.
A source
familiar with the matter said that uncertainties about the exact border between
Croatia and Montenegro had also affected the planning of the blocks.
Croatia's
Hydrocarbon Agency, which supervises the project, confirmed on its website the
consortium had withdrawn and said a new licensing round for both onshore and
offshore exploration would be called in September. 'The project is continuing
as planned. From day one, we've seen serious interest from global companies,
which is confirmed by daily queries about the possible date of a new licensing
round,' it said.
Croatia had
expected to sign contracts with the oil companies this month, despite
opposition to offshore drilling in the Adriatic from environmental groups and
some opposition parties, who said drilling could harm Croatia's tourism industry.
Two other
licences in the January round had gone to INA and one to a consortium of
Italy's ENI and London-based Medoilgas.
Croatia is
also set to hand out a round of onshore exploration licences to companies
including Vermilion Zagreb Exploration, a unit of Canada's Vermilion, Croatia's
INA and Nigeria-based Oando.
The awarded
onshore and offshore licences would be signed in early September, the
Hydrocarbon Agency said.
(www.energy-pedia.com, 29 July, 2015)