All geological and economic studies carried out to date have shown that the projected oil well called Hagar Qim shows more promise than the one named Tarxien, and will therefore be the one to be drilled first, Infrastructure Minister Joe Mizzi said in Parliament yesterday.

He was answering a question by Opposition MP Toni Bezzina, who had asked why the Government was not insisting on Tarxien first when its geological structure was very similar to Libyan oilfields.

Mr Mizzi said the contractor was bound to drill an oil well in the first phase of exploration, and would be obliged to drill more if he chose to pursue the exploration with other oil wells.

Mediterranean Oil and Gas and Genel Energy should start drilling the first well in the first quarter of 2014.

The minister explained that before the Government entered into a production sharing agreement with an oil company, it must ascertain that the company would technically and financially be in a position to satisfy the obligations on contract.

The contract also specified that the contractor must undertake the exploration for, and exploitation of, oil on the Government’s behalf, and must exclusively assume all risks and expenses.

Besides their own studies, the two companies had chosen to appoint an independent company to give its own technical opinion.

Hagar Qim is located about 150 kilometres south of Malta in Area Four. 

Area 4 has largely been overlooked in Malta’s oil exploration history. In 1993, Amoco had drilled Tama-1 and although the well gave indications that oil was present, it was not in commercially viable quantities.

Tama-1 was drilled in Block 3, to the west of blocks licensed to Mediterranean Oil and Gas, which will drill in unexplored zones.