Forum Energy to explore Recto Bank next year

MANILA, Philippines—Forum Energy Plc may spend anywhere between $70 million and $100 million to finally drill a deepwater exploration well within the contested Recto Bank by next year, as it targets to tap gas-rich blocks within the area.

In an interview with reporters Wednesday night, Energy Undersecretary Jose M. Layug Jr. said the company is expected to conduct drilling activities as Forum Energy has already completed its seismic data acquisition in the first quarter of this year and is now in the process of reviewing the results.

Layug further disclosed that Forum Energy, led by Philex Mining Corp., is now looking for potential partners for its exploration and drilling activities within Service Contract 72.

Philex Mining, through its subsidiaries FEC Resources Inc. and Philex Petroleum Corp., holds 64.45 percent of the issued capital of Forum Energy.

Forum Energy, meanwhile, holds 70 percent of the SC 72 license, while the remaining 30 percent is held by Monte Oro Resources and Energy Inc. (MORE).

According to Layug, Forum Energy seemed bent on pursuing its activities within SC 72 despite the security problems it faced earlier, when its exploration boat was “approached” by two Chinese patrol boats.

The Recto Bank, which was being disputed to be part of the Spratly group of islands and was being claimed by several neighboring countries, reportedly contains some 3.4 trillion cubic feet of gas and potentially 440 million barrels of oil. It is believed to host much bigger deposits of oil and gas than the adjoining Shell Philippines Exploration BV-operated Malampaya gas field, the country’s only gas production field to date.

Given the resources covered by SC 72, Forum Energy had said that it was even enough to form the foundation of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, similar to the Malampaya deepwater-to-gas power project.