Yemen 's oil ministry has qualified 18 international oil companies, including France 's Total SA (TOT) and Norway 's DNO International ASA (DNO.OS), to bid for 20 onshore and offshore blocks in its sixth auction aimed at boosting the country's hydrocarbon output through foreign investments.

Yemen 's Oil Minister Ahmed Dares said in a statement posted on the ministry website on Monday that 45 firms had applied to bid for the blocks and only 18 had qualified. Nine of the blocks are onshore and 11 are offshore.

Besides Total and DNO, Austrian oil and gas company OMV AG (OMV.VI), Hunt Oil and Gas and Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company also qualified for the bid.

Yemen is a relatively small oil and natural gas producer located at the tip of the Arabian Peninsula on Bab el-Mandab, one of the world's most important shipping lanes. The country has proven oil reserves of around 3 billion barrels, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

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