South Sudan’s Petroleum Minister revealed that Total SA contacted South Sudan about developing two of its biggest oil blocks after previous talks on the fields failed, Bloomberg reported.
“They have written to me that they are still interested in blocks B1 and B2, “Petroleum Minister, Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth, said in an interview in Cape Town.
He added that Tullow Oil Plc has also asked to discuss the blocks, RIGZONE informed.
Discussions with Total on blocks B1 and B2 reached an impasse in April, prompting the country to open negotiations to new investors. The blocks are part of the former Block B, which the government says is the nation’s largest untapped oil deposit.
Total’s officials “weren’t forthcoming” during the discussions, Gatkuoth said. He explained that the parties disagreed on the length of the exploration period, capital-gains taxes and royalty terms.
Meanwhile, Tullow General Manager New Ventures Africa, Robin Sutherland, said “We’re still in discussions with the government around opportunities in South Sudan.”
“We think it’s a good opportunity and there are “many options” for transporting oil from the nation with pipelines planned in neighboring Uganda and Kenya,” he added.
