By the OGJ Online Staff
HOUSTON, Mar. 9�Statoil AS is considering selling its operations in Vietnam, the Norwegian oil and gas giant informed its partners and Vietnamese government officials Friday.
The proposed sale conforms with Statoil's upstream focusing on its core areas of western Europe, Venezuela, the Caspian region, and western Africa.
Several companies recently inquired about buying Statoil's license rights in Viet Nam, Statoil executives said. The interested parties were not identified.
Since June 2000, Statoil has invested in the $1.3 billion Nam Con Son gas development project off Viet Nam. The project calls for development of two fields, a pipeline, and a receiving terminal.
Lan Tay and Lan Do gas and condensate fields will be developed via a steel production platform, a 360-km pipeline, and an onshore gas-processing terminal. The pipeline will be able to accommodate future supplies from the Nam Con Son basin, said BP, including Hai Thach field discovered in 1995 (OGJ Online, Mar. 1, 2001).
Statoil owns 13.33% of the project, which is operated by BP with 26.67%. Other partners are India's ONGC Videsh Ltd. with 45% and state company PetroVietnam with 15%.
Lan Tay is slated to start production in the fourth quarter. The gas will be brought ashore southeast of Ho Chi Minh City via a line in which Statoil would hold 16.33% interest. BP would operate the gas pipeline with 32.67% and PetroVietnam would own 51%.