|
DELAYS in the Galoc field’s development program have resulted in a
substantial increase in the project’s cost, Alfredo Ramos,
Philodrill Corp. president, said.
In the company’s annual report to its
stockholders, the Philodrill official said that the contractual and
operational delays in the implementation of the Galoc project has
jacked up its project cost from $86.4 million to $118 million as of
last week.
The Galoc field is the first oil development
project to be undertaken in the country in over a decade since West
Linapacan. The former is also the first offshore development in
seven years since Malampaya.
Philodrill, a local petroleum exploration and
development firm, holds a 7.02-percent stake in the project, which
is operated by the Galoc Production Co. (GPC), which has a
32-percent interest.
Australian firm Nido Petroleum Ltd. controls a
22.28-percent stake in the Galoc field while the rest of the
shareholdings are held by other local upstream oil companies.
The consortium initially targeted to produce its
first oil from the field in April but delays in the
pre-commissioning of the Galoc’s production vessel, mechanical
troubles and adverse weather conditions subsequently pushed its
target date to early July.
Despite its rising cost, Ramos said the
project’s budget overrun, which will be shouldered by GPC under
the terms of its farm-in agreement, is unlikely to have a
significant impact on its economic viability “in view of the high
level of crude prices and the favorable prognosis on the recoverable
oil reserves and expected production flow rates.”
The Galoc field is said to contain proven
reserves of up to 16 million barrels of oil.
Philodrill expects its profits to surge from P28
million last year to P1.2 billion this year when its shares of
revenues from Galoc’s oil start pouring in.
Philodrill’s shares at the Philippine Stock
Exchange closed lower Tuesday at P0.031 from P0.033 previously.
-- Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo
|
