November 12 (SeeNews) - Montenegro expects a 3D seismic study of oil and gas blocks located offshore the town of Ulcinj to start later this month, the head of Montenegro's maritime traffic supervision and control service said.
The Polar Empress survey vessel will enter Montenegrin territorial waters on November 14 and will launch a 3D seismic study shortly after to determine the presence of oil and natural gas, Zarko Luksic said in a video file posted on the website of public broadcaster RTCG on Saturday.
The research will be conducted on about 1,200 square kilometres of seabed in an area for which the Italian-Russian consortium Eni-Novatek holds a licence, RTCG said.
"Works are planned for a period of 34 days depending on the weather conditions," Luksic noted.
In September 2016, Montenegro signed a concession contract with the Eni-Novatek consortium for the development of exploration blocks 4118-4, 4118-5, 4118-9 and 4118-10 with a total area of about 1,200 square kilometres located in Montenegrin territorial waters. Novatek and Eni each hold 50% stake in the concession.