Oil exploration programmes

After listening to the Budget for 2006, and reviewing the financial figures and statements for 2005, I do believe that the current Nationalist government is striving to - and succeeding to - in minimise the deficit and boost the economy.

I also get the feeling that foresight on many of the budgetary items does not simply spawn from the valley of dreams, but is born from a painfully slow but realistic vision.

But why is nothing ever mentioned about our potential oil reserves?

Since 2003 the government has been in talks with a large Australian oil company PCL (Pancontinental Oil & Gas) for Malta's oil exploration programme. With a friend of mine, we have been closely monitoring the progress of this project, considering the excellent results that PCL has shown so far.

Quoting from PCL's Quarterly Activities Report (March 2005, statement issued after the conclusion of the Seismic survey - Area 5 and Block 3 Area 4, Southern Offshore Malta): "This interpretation has now provided a quantitative understanding of these prospects and leads present in the area and confirmed the presence of several leads with potential world class oil reserves."

When the CEO of this multinational company was asked what was, and will be, the most significant deal for his company, his reply included Malta. For the full text of the report visit www.pancon.com.au, the company's official Website.

Attached to this document are also a seismic expression chart and a risk reward profile drawn up by PCL. Although this is certainly not my area of expertise, it is obvious that results are extremely encouraging.

At this stage Anadarko was also invited by PCL to join the exploration. Anadarko is one of the largest companies in the oil industry, a Fortune 500 company.

What I find particularly bizarre, if not worrisome, is not the fact that the public is unaware of such government negotiations but that these ventures have always been shrouded in mystery, suddenly grinding to a halt. It is no longer acceptable that the Maltese are fed fairytales of the past. Malta does have its own oil reserves and people do deserve to know the truth about why successive governments failed to use these resources.

When one looks at the map of the central Mediterranean, one would notice how many oil fields surround our territorial waters: Sicily, Tunisia, Libya, etc. Are we so unlucky not to strike oil?

According to the last update we have from PCL, the government has now put the project on hold for the next six months to facilitate negotiations on disputed territorial waters.

Meanwhile, once again, we have had yet another burst of interest from Libya on a variety of items that don't seem clear. It would be interesting to know what has provoked Libya's interest in dealing with Malta on lower cost fuels and other items again.

What we would like to know most of all, though, is where Malta stands with its oil exploration programmes?