15 foreign firms invited to join PNOC in Malampaya project

At least 15 foreign oil exploration firms have been invited by the state-owned Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) to serve as a third party in the development of the Camago-Malampaya Oil Leg (CMOL).

One of these entities, if chosen, will undertake the re-appraisal, development and production of crude oil found beneath the Malampaya gas cap in offshore northwest Palawan. 

The move is in line with the project’s Terms of Service issued by the DOE which allows PNOC to team up with interested parties for the said activities.

"A total of 15 local and foreign companies have already been invited to submit their appraisal and development plans as well as documents on their financial capabilities," PNOC said.

Among the 15, some of the notable companies invited are Petronas, Nido Petroleum Phils. Pty. Ltd., and Forum Exploration Inc. 

PNOC-Exploration Corp. (PNOC-EC), an oil exploration development arm of PNOC, intends to select its partners for the project not later than June this year.

All these companies have, in the past, studied and reviewed the viability of producing the Malampaya oil reserves.

It said the selection by June this year is important as PNOC EC is targeting first oil production by end of next year.

The government has been eagerly pursuing the development of the CMOL to help reduce the country’s dependence on imported oil.

On Nov. 29, 2005, Malacañang issued Executive Order (EO) 473 which tasked the DOE to immediately develop and produce the oil from the Camago-Malampaya reservoir. This led to the signing of the Terms of Service between the DOE and PNOC on March 17, 2006. 

On the same date, the DOE, PNOC and the Malampaya SC-38 consortium also inked a tripartite agreement to allow smooth coordination between the gas and oil projects and ensure the safe development of the oil rim  and unhampered operations of the Malampaya DeepWater Gas Project which currently supplies natural gas to three large power plants in Batangas.