The Government of Barbados has reopened the second Offshore Licensing Round for the drilling of oil offshore Barbados after the decision was postponed last December because several companies had requested additional time to evaluate acreage and data, Barbados Today reported on Saturday, March 25.
According to a statement the delay also allowed for amendments to the legislative and licensing frameworks that allowed the country to “improve efficiency and ease of doing business” within the sector.
During her March 14 Budget presentation, Prime Minister Mia Mottley said: “I expect that the new round will take place in the second week of April and this new push, therefore, will facilitate and fast-track the processes and the direct state-to-state negotiations with the amendments to come to Parliament.”
Mottley said the Cabinet has already approved the recommended amendments to the Offshore Petroleum Act that should facilitate the launching of the new offshore bidding round.
She explained officials from Scotland are expected to provide technical assistance in the area of offshore wind, with assistance from the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
“The initial prospectivity suggests that there may well be as much as over 42 trillion cubic feet of gas or 13 billion barrels of undiscovered oil,” said Mottley.“The reality is, though, that while you may have that cumulative amount, the 3-D seismic work will tell you what is immediately extractable and, therefore, I don’t count my eggs before they are hatched.”
The country currently produces about 1,600 barrels of onshore oil per day.