Did anyone else see this newspaper article in the SMH last week? An extract follows:
Search on for new oil fields Jason Koutsoukis Sydney Morning Herald Newspaper February 24, 2008
" 'At present, just 17 per cent of Australia's offshore sedimentary basins and 26 per cent of potentially prospective onshore basins are covered by petroleum permits', Dr Powell said.
'There are more than 50 sedimentary basins in Australia, of which 12 are currently producing oil or gas and four have reserves deemed non- commercial.'
Dr Powell said new crude oil discoveries were essential for maintaining the economic benefit of petroleum supply, which reached $22.7 billion in 2006, with governments receiving $8.1 billion in taxes and royalties.
'Given the maturity of Australia's oil producing areas, only the discovery of a substantial new oil province can arrest the decline in reserves and production,' he said.
Dr Powell said the most likely oil rich areas included the Arafura Sea in northern Australia, the remote eastern frontier regions such as the Faust, Capel and Fairway basins of the Lord Howe Rise and the continental shelf area south of Tasmania, the South Tasman Rise.
Onshore, they include the lower Paleozoic basins of central Australia such as the Canning [Clark888: in which ARQ has majority interest], Georgina, Warburton and Darling basins -which have geological similarities to oil-rich basins in North America - and the Gunnedah, Pedirka and Simpson basins."
Cheers
ARQ Price at posting:
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