Almost all
of the extra 3 billion barrels equivalent of oil and gas reserves BG Group PLC added
in Brazil
last month reside in prior discoveries that can be produced without additional
capital expenditure, Chief Executive Frank Chapman said Tuesday.
"All of this extra resource can be produced without the need to install
extra facilities," because 95% of them are in five fields that already
have development plans, he said in a conference call with reporters.
Hence, the extra barrels will be of much higher incremental value to BG than
prior discoveries, Chapman said.
Offshore Tanzania,
BG and its partners have discovered between 3 trillion and 3.5 trillion cubic
feet of natural gas, Chapman said. This is enough for a single floating
liquefied natural gas plant, but BG favors building a two-train LNG facility
onshore, he said. This would require total gas discoveries to rise to between 8
trillion and 10 trillion cubic feet, he said.
In Kazakhstan,
BG is in "intensive talks" with the government to resolve a
long-running dispute over alleged unpaid taxes and illegal earnings,
Chapman
said. "There is an enormous amount of goodwill...I believe these
discussions will lead to a conclusion this year," he said.
Political unrest in Tunisia
and Egypt
has had little lasting effect on BG Group, Chapman said. Strikes in Tunisia haven't
affected operations and the transitional regime has dealt impressively with the
oil and gas industry and is continuing to take important decisions, he said.
Flooding in Queensland, Australia, has slowed down BG's plans to drill coal
seam gas wells, but an extra 12 rigs have been contracted to allow the company
to make up the time and the 2014 target for the startup of the company's LNG plant
there remains on track, Chapman said.