A Norwegian-US joint venture (JV) - TGS-Schlumberger - is eyeing to carry out environmental impact assessment (EIA) in offshore blocks before conducting the long-awaited multi-client seismic survey there.
The TGS-Schlumberger JV is now getting prepared to conduct the EIA efficiently, said a senior Petrobangla official.
After completing the EIA, it will carry out the multi-client seismic survey, paving the way for launching a new offshore bidding round to explore the country's untapped offshore blocks by international oil companies (IOCs), he said.
The energy ministry has already deferred a scheduled plan to announce a fresh offshore bidding in March, considering global spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
Sources said the JV was selected for the job twice following two separate competitive biddings, floated back in 2015.
The initial bidding, floated in early 2015, was cancelled. The subsequent bidding, floated in late 2015, was held up over the past three and a half years.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs finally approved awarding the job of carrying out the multi-client seismic survey to the TGS-Schlumberger JV in April last year.
Global spread of the deadly coronavirus pandemic and subsequent record fall of oil and energy prices in international market, however, have discouraged the contractor to initiate the survey, resulting in the delay.
The Norwegian seismic specialist TGS and the US oilfield services provider Schlumberger are jointly involved at present in multi-client seismic project in the Gulf of Mexico.
The JV is expected to carry out survey in 21 offshore hydrocarbon blocks within the sovereign territory of Bangladesh.
The blocks cover 81,000 square-kilometre areas with depths ranging from 20 metres to around 2,500 metres in the Bay.
On completion of the survey, Petrobangla planned to provide the non-exclusive multi-client seismic data of the offshore blocks to the interested IOCs to help them carry out basin evaluation, prospect generation, and participation in the bidding for exploration.
The TGS-Schlumberger JV would get two years to complete the survey, and it would be free to trade the data to the interested IOCs over the next eight years.
The seismic surveyor would not receive payment for its work from Petrobangla, as per the tender term. The JV, however, would have to share the seismic data and the profit with Petrobangla.
Bangladesh never carried out multi-client seismic surveys in offshore areas.
The country earlier floated international tenders several times to carry out oil and gas exploration, both in onshore and offshore areas, by the IOCs.
The bid-winning IOCs carried out seismic surveys of their own in their respective blocks before initiating oil and gas explorations.
The country's offshore areas are now well-demarcated following the verdicts from international court.
Bangladesh has territorial rights of up to 200 nautical miles from shore as exclusive economic zone in the Bay of Bengal. Besides, the country has free access to around 387 nautical miles into deep sea following demarcation of maritime boundary by international court of arbitration.
There are, however, huge potentials of getting hydrocarbon in Bangladesh's maritime territory, as both India and Myanmar have already discovered huge volume of gas in the Bay.
The IOCs are expected to show significant interest to explore the country's offshore areas once the seismic data are available, said energy expert Professor M Tamim, who is currently serving as the pro vice chancellor of Brac University.
Petrobangla had floated offshore bidding rounds without any survey in 2008, 2012 and 2016. But only a few IOCs took part in the bidding, and production sharing contracts (PSCs) could be inked for four blocks only.
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