January 26 (SeeNews) - Shell is expected to start an exploration drilling programme in block 1-14 Khan Kubrat in the Bulgarian sector of the Black Sea in late 2018 or in 2019, Shell Upstream Bulgaria said on Friday.
The company successfully completed a comprehensive geophysical survey in Khan Kubrat licence area in January, Aleksandar Arabadzhian, external relations adviser at Shell Upstream Bulgaria, told SeeNews in an emailed statement.
"We are currently in the process of preparing for a single exploration well in the Khan Kubrat block and will conduct all necessary assessments in line with Bulgarian legislation and Shell internal procedures," the statement reads.
The exploration drilling programme is expected to take approximately 3-4 months to complete, Arabadzhian added.
In February 2016, Bulgaria's energy ministry said that Royal Dutch Shell has signed a five-year term contract for exploration for oil and gas in the Silistar block. Under the contract, the company will pay the government 4.9 million euro (excluding VAT) and invest 18.6 million euro ($19.94 million) in research activities, the ministry said at the time.
In April, 2017, the Bulgarian government said it decided to transfer the exploration rights on Bulgaria’s offshore block 1-14 Silistar to Shell International Exploration and Development Italia from Dutch-based Shell Exploration and Production. As a result of the transfer, the block’s name was changed from Silistar to Khan Kubrat.
The block spreads on an area of 6,893 sq km in the Black Sea.
($= 0.80366 euro)