WEDNESDAY |June 08, 2005 | PHILIPPINES
Vitol to invest $31M
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By LENIE LECTURA
Netherlands-based Vitol Group will pour in an additional $31 million into a consortium tasked to develop oil reserves located northwest of Palawan.
The group is an international marketer of petroleum products. It had earlier committed to invest $9 million to the Galoc Production Co. (GPC), a consortium formed by British
firm Team Oil Ltd. and Cape Energy Pty. Ltd. of Australia to develop oil reserves in an oil field estimated to hold about 30 to 50 million barrels.
Vitol will underwrite a $31 million loan to further develop the Galoc oil field. The Vitol group has interests and activities in the African oil industry. It is one of the worlds foremost oil trading companies with a wide range of activities encompassing exploration, refining and shipping. Its product portfolio includes a range of fuels, chemicals and liquefied petroleum gas.
Team Oil and Cape Energy earlier signed a "farm-in agreement" with SC 14 consortium which holds the rights to explore the oil reserves in the Galoc field.
Vitols investment was known through Philodrill Corp., one of the consortium members which hold Service Contract 14. The other members includes Oriental Petroleum and Mineral Corp., Alcorn Phils.; Alcorn Gold Resources; Linapacan Oil, Gas & Power; Altisima Energy; Basic Petroleum and Minerals; Petroenergy Resources; Phoenix Energy; and Perth-based Nido Petroleum.
The agreement cover the Galoc area, which will be developed by the Team Oil and Cape Energy at their own cost in exchange for 80 percent equity.
The consortium completed as of end-March three crude shipments to Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. of 38,385 barrels of crude from SC 14, particularly, from the Nido and Matinloc areas.
http://www.malaya.com.ph/jun08/busi2.htm
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