MANILA, Philippines - Forum Energy Plc., the United Kingdom oil and gas exploration firm majority owned by taipan Manuel V. Pangilinan’s Philex Petroleum, has tapped a $2.58-million loan from BNP Paribas for the Galoc Oil Field project in offshore Palawan.
The funds would be used to finance Forum Energy’s share in the second phase of development of the Galoc project, which is expected to start in the second half of the year, Forum Energy said.
Forum Energy has a 2.27-percent interest in the field, earning $2.5 million last year, down from $10.1 million in 2011.
The amount would be used to fund 60 percent of the estimated $4.33-million share of Forum Energy in the development costs for this phase of the project.
The Galoc Oil Field is the country’s only oil producer of commercial scale, with production volume of some 6,000 barrels per day.
Australian oil firm Otto Energy, is the majority shareholder of the Galoc field under Service Contract 14C through Galoc Production Co.
Its partners in the project are Nido Petroleum Ltd (22.8 percent), Oriental Petroleum and Minerals Corp and Linapacan Oil Gas and Power Corp (7.7 percent), The Philodrill Corp. (7.2 percent) and Forum Energy Philippines Corp. (2.27 percent).
Otto earlier announced that the consortium has agreed to proceed with the second phase of the Galoc Field development that is expected to commence in the second half of the year, with the drilling of two additional production wells.
This is expected to boost production to 12,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd) in the third quarter of 2013 from the current 5,410 bopd.
Forum Energy said the consortium also approved an exploration well in Galoc to test another prospect adjacent to the Galoc Oil Field.
However, the company stressed this remains a contingent program.
Forum Energy earlier reported that is gross profit plunged to only $918,000 last year from $5.8 million a year ago, partly due to a decrease in oil production from Galoc.
Revenues from the oil field dropped to $4.522 million last year from $12.7 million in 2011, partly due the temporary closure of Galoc in the early part of 2012 which resulted in a decrease in production to 5,410 bopd from 6,637 bopd.