DHAKA, Bangladesh, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- Bangladesh and France's Total will explore offshore oil in two blocks in the Bay of Bengal, Independent Bangladesh reported.
Thailand's PTT Exploration and Production arm said its subsidiary, PTTEP Bangladesh, signed an agreement with a subsidiary of Total to explore two offshore blocks in the north of the Bay of Bengal.
The agreement, which needed approval from the Bangladesh government and other partners, is PTTEP's first investment in South Asia. PTTEP Bangladesh will get a 30-percent stake in the project, said Maroot Mrigadat, PTTEP president.
Total E & P Bangladesh, a wholly owned unit of French oil group Total, owns 30 percent, Tullow Bangladesh, a unit of British gas and oil group Tullow, owns 32 percent, and Okland Bangladesh Ltd. and Rexwood Offshore Holdings Limited own 4 percent each.
The two blocks cover 5,298 square miles and have been identified as a potential gas site.
PTTEP has invested in 37 oil and gas exploration and development projects in the Middle East, Africa and Asia and is looking to buy new gas and oil assets both locally and abroad to increase reserves and capacity.
