The Spanish oil giant Repsol has postponed its plans to drill for gas off the Algarve coast but says the exploration project has not been cancelled.
Repsol's Executive Director in Portugal commented that due to the current uncertainty in the sector, dates are not and cannot be rigid.
Repsol has a current exploration license in partnership with Partex and had planned to start drilling this autumn to evaluate any natural gas reserves in the bloc.
António Calçada de Sá, Repsol's Executive Director in Portugal, now admits that the project will be delayed but that "it remains in the portfolio."
In an interview with Expresso, the director admitted to "some delays regarding the original timetable," but explains that the situation is not unusual in this sector.
“Licensing issues, technical details and the analysis of financial investments” are some of the factors that have contributed to the difficulty in fixing a date for drilling the first exploratory well.
"The exploration for natural gas off the Algarve coast is not ruled out," concluded António Calçada de Sá.
There are no known delays to exploratory drilling off the west Algarve/Alentejo coast by a consortium made up of Portugal's Galp and Italy's Eni which plans to start before the year end.
Comments
Could it be that the company is shelving the plan until the hoohah dies down, hoping to catch the protestor side off-side?