MOG to commission rig to drill offshore Malta, as government grants extension

Mediterranean Oil & Gas says drilling contracts to be awarded in early 2013, after being granted one-year extension to the exploration phase of the Area 4 production sharing contract.

6 December 2012, 12:00am
by Karl Stagno-Navarra

1 min read

MOG says it is progressing plans that will enable it to test the first prospect with the drill bit by the end of 2013

AIM listed petroleum company Mediterranean Oil & Gas (MOG) has announced to investors that the Government of Malta has granted it a one year extension to the exploration phase of Area 4 production sharing contract.The exploration period will now run until January 2014, it said.

MOG currently owns 100% of the PSC, though Anglo-Turkish major Genel Energy recently agreed to farm-in to the project through a two-well financing deal.

"We welcome the support we have received from the Maltese authorities," Bill Higgs, chief executive of MOG said, adding that the company "is progressing plans that will enable us to test the first prospect with the drill bit by the end of 2013 and we are on track to finalise the shareholding arrangement by which Genel plc will join us in exploring Area 4."

Higgs said that MOG "intends to start awarding drilling related contracts early in the New Year, including contracting of a drilling rig for the operations.We are excited to be leading this new phase of exploration activity offshore Malta."

More from Karl Stagno-Navarra

Luke Camilleri •

Ara dawn in-nies veru WICCHOM BLA ZEJT! B'min irridu mhux jidhku IMMA JITNEJKU? Issa stennew il-Gonzi & Co. fuq kull program tal-PBS nizel minn fuq xi helicopter fuq xi Oil Rig jiccekja fejn wasal it-thaffir! Madonna ta' Pinu henn ghalina!

Mark Fenech •

It should be the first well in the history to be dug when a pn government is in power. All the few wells dug in Malta and around Malta were always when there was a labour government in power. The latest one was in 1998 during the 22 months of Labour government between Nov. 1996 and Aug. 1998. Now the elections are near so we want to show we are doing something. Very too little and very too late.

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SIBNA IZ ZEJT, SIBNA IZ ZEJT, ZGUR MHUX F WICC IL PRIM MINISTRU