Serbia’s Tender Oil & Gas Casamance SARL (TOG) has signed a production sharing contract (PSC) with Senegal’s Ministry of Energy and its national oil company Petrosen for two onshore blocks in the West African country
The blocks — Saloum and Senegal Onshore Sud — cover an area of 28,897 sq km and gives TOG licence and exclusive rights to explore hydrocarbon for the next eight years.
According to the Serbian company, initial exploration investment is expected to increase during the development and production phase, resulting in drilling wells for new oil and gas production sites in the country.
TOG management board president Gehrig Schultz said, “If prospects on these blocks prove to contain commercial quantities of oil and gas, it will contribute to the continued economic growth of Senegal, helping create new jobs for Senegalese people, provide additional taxes and royalties to fund government programs, and reduce the country’s reliance on imported energy supplies.”
As part of the agreement, TOG is expected to train industry specialists to ensure quality work and would support national Senegalese social programmes in order to contribute to the prosperity of the region. Part of the obligatory US$42mn investment made by TOG would be allocated to these actions, the company said.
Tender Group owner Ovidiu Tender added, “Tender Group is constantly searching for additional promising and challenging geological areas. We believe that this partnership is an opportunity to expand our strong presence in the region and this new strategy allows us to increase our knowledge about the favourable geology of Senegal.”
TOG holds a 90 per cent working interest in the two blocks with Petrosen holding the remaining 10 per cent. TOG said that its goal was to lead 2D seismic exploration in the area and re-process old data to discover new drilling opportunities. When commercial discoveries are made, Tender Oil & Gas said that it would look for exclusive rights to oil and/or gas production for another 25 to 35 years.
