A frontier oil and natural gas province is emerging in Lebanon, according to findings from a study by NEOS GeoSolutions, the company said July 27.

Jim Hollis, president and CEO of NEOS, said there were indicators of a hydrocarbon system in geoscience data sets that were interpreted. The neoBASIN study evaluated a 6,000-square mile area in the onshore northern half of Lebanon and in the transition zone along the Mediterranean coast.

Only seven wells have ever been drilled in Lebanon, Hollis added. The company worked with Lebanon’s ministry of energy and water, the Lebanon Petroleum Administration and Petroserv, NEOS’ local partner.

There is evidence of hydrocarbon-generating source rock and oil seeps, large structural traps and evidence of stacked-play types in the area. Some of the structural traps have resistivity anomalies, NEOS added.

“This neoBASIN project has put the topic of onshore oil and gas exploration on the top of our national agenda once again. As an indication of the importance in which we hold this project, the ministry will begin undertaking all of the necessary procedures to ensure the development of a vibrant onshore exploration sector,” Arthur Nazarian, the Lebanese minister of energy and water, said.

Hollis said that additional data, including seismic, needs to be acquired for the most promising structures, in order to de-risk the opportunity and secure capital.

NEOS Geosolutions is based in Houston.