Oil and gas exploration company, Chariot Oil & Gas, has chosen not to enter into the First Renewal Phase of the C-19 licence offshore Mauritania, after failing to find a partner to fund exploration.
The company said it acquired 3500 square kilometers of proprietary 3D seismic data, undertook extensive reprocessing of legacy 2D seismic data and completed seabed coring to enable an integrated analysis and evaluation of the hydrocarbon potential and prospectivity of the C-19 block.
According to Chariot, the work undertaken by the company to de-risk this asset resulted in industry interest, with a number of partnering discussions reaching advanced stages, however these did not lead to a firm transaction within the defined timeframe.
Whilst Chariot considers the acreage to be prospective, this decision was made in line with the company’s strategy and focus on portfolio management and capital discipline, the company explained.
Larry Bottomley , Chariot CEO, said: “A fundamental part of Chariot’s risk strategy is partnering through the major investment phases in our exploration programs. This independent, third-party validation ensures that we invest the company’s capital on the best quality opportunities.
He said that while the company failed to attract third-party funding for an exploration well in C-19, it substantially achieved its aspiration of zero-cost exploration on this licence.
Bottomley added: “ While it is clearly disappointing, it is important that the company maintain discipline in the management of risk, allocation of capital and in developing those parts of the portfolio likely to yield drilling opportunities.
“We would like to thank our partners for their support through the exploration campaign, and in particular the Ministry of Mines and Energy for facilitating our attempts to progress this licence through to drilling.”