Oil exploration records that were abandoned in a San Ġwann store will be digitised, according to Infrastructure Minister Joe Mizzi.

A process to digitise the information has started

The state in which the reams of paper, files and rock samples were found had prompted an investigation by the ministry.

When Times of Malta visited the store in April, the records detailing Malta’s unsuccessful attempts to find oil were all over the place and gathering dust.

A visit to the place last week showed a completely different picture as workers started sifting through the information, indexing it and storing it in marked boxes.

Mr Mizzi said various cuttings and cores from oil wells drilled throughout the years were found, including documents that had to be leafed page by page. With three quarters of the filing done, Mr Mizzi said he hoped the whole process would finish by the end of this month.

“I was surprised when I realised that most of the records are not in digital format and a process to digitise the information has started,” he said, adding this would facilitate the evaluation process done by oil companies.

Asked about the content of the records, Mr Mizzi said there were various reports on the Malta-Libya dispute that ended up before the international court, documents related to the Gozo oil well, old contracts, technical data and stone collections.

However, he did not elaborate on the information contained in these documents.

In 50 years of oil exploration, Malta only drilled 12 wells, a far cry from the undertakings in neighbouring countries that have drilled hundreds of wells.

Libya, Tunisia and Italy have all discovered oil and gas reserves in offshore areas around Malta.

ksansone@timesofmalta.com