Trio bid for Black Sea block

摘要

ExxonMobil, Total and the UK's Melrose Resources have submitted bids to take part in a tender for exploration rights at a deepwater gas block in the Bulgarian sector of the Black Sea, the country's Ministry of Economy and Energy said June 21. Financial bids for block 1-21 Khan Asparuh are due to be submitted by July 4, it said. The contract with the chosen company is expected to be signed in the autumn, minister Delyan Dobrev said in a statement. Exploration work includes drilling to 5,000 meters, which could take several years, he said. "Nonetheless we are in the right direction and I hope that significant deposits of gas can be found," Dobrev said. He said his belief was based on recent discoveries in the Romanian part of the Black Sea.