Chevron returns to drill for oil in Turkey’s Black Sea

ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News

This photo shows an oil well platform in the western Black Sea 9 km from Akçakoca. Chevron wants to extend its license to drill for oil from July 2012 to July 2016.

American oil giant Chevron has asked for an extension of its drilling license in Turkey’s Black Sea Bolu Petroleum Region, according to daily Zaman. The Prime Ministry will have the last word on the issue.

If Chevron gets the green light it will be allowed to drill for oil in the Black Sea from July 2012 until July 2016.

Chevron had previously partnered with the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) to drill for oil off the coast of Sinop on the western Black Sea coast, but its drilling rights expired back in October 2010, when drilling at the Yassıhöyük 1 oil well was unsuccessful. The company then left the region.

Now the company is hoping for an extension of its contract for the Bolu Petroleum Region, where it is a license holder alongside TPAO.

If the Prime Ministry agrees to the license extension, Chevron will become the sole operator and could also bring on board another large international company, sources say.

Chevron acquired a 50 percent interest in the western portion of the License 3921 block in the Bolu Petroleum Region, said the company in an announcement in September 2010, according to the company’s official web site. TPAO holds the remaining 50 percent interest in the license.

TPAO, Turkey’s sole national oil company founded in 1954, has pioneered efforts in all branches of the petroleum industry in Turkey.