Speaking May 1 at the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston, DeSilva, just one of several Sri Lankan officials present, said in the upcoming bid round, Sri Lanka will offer three parcels in the Mannar basin. The basin has been divided into eight blocks. India and China"s state oil companies have been promised one block each.

DeSilva said Sri Lanka"s oil and gas potential is supported by its shared geology with countries that have commercial oil and gas production.

The Mannar basin has thick sedimentary rocks with large structures that are compared geologically to Brazil, he said. It also contains regions of shallow gas. The source rocks are of Cretaceous and Jurassic age.

Petroleum Minister A.H.M. Fowzie said Sri Lanka is soliciting cooperation from the US as it begins to develop its oil and gas industry. He said the country needs technical resources to exploit its oil and gas.

During 2001 and 2005, over 6,000 km of 2D seismic data have been acquired. These data, along with interpretation reports and well data, will be included in the bid packages that will be available by midyear, De Silva said.

He explained that earlier exploration efforts in Sri Lanka were unsuccessful as they were in the shallowest parts of the basin.

PIN/OGJ.COM