BP announced that its acquisition of an interest in block 42/05 in the South China Sea’s Pearl River Mouth Basin has been approved by the Chinese Government.
BP has acquired a 40.82% interest in the block from Devon Energy China. The block covers an area of 6939 square kilometres. Chevron acquired the remaining 59.18% and will be the operator during the exploration phase under the amendment agreements to a production sharing contract with China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC).
CNOOC Limited, a listed arm of CNOOC, has the right to back-in to a level of 51% during the development phase of the production sharing contract.
“BP is currently a partner with CNOOC Limited, producing gas from the Yacheng 13-1 field in the South China Sea for supply into Hong Kong and Hainan Province,” said William Lin, BP’s head of Asia Pacific Exploration & Production.
“This new opportunity in Block 42/05 is a significant step to increasing our footprint in the region, as well as building on our existing business in the South China Sea. We look forward to working with CNOOC and Chevron on this new block,” he added.
BP has been operating in China since the early 1970s and has business activities which include offshore gas production, chemical joint ventures, solar power installations and manufacturing.
