BG Acquires 60% Interest In Offshore Tanzania JV

To farm in on three blocks offshore Tanzania.

BG Group Plc (London: BG) plans to farm-in to three blocks offshore southern Tanzania owned by Ophir Energy Plc, London, in exchange for 85% of initial work program costs.

BG will acquire 60% of Ophir's interests in Blocks 1, 3 and 4, which cover more than 10,000 square miles of the Mafia Deep and Ruvuma basins. Water depth of the blocks ranges from approximately 325 feet to more than 9,840 feet.

Under the agreement, BG will fund the drilling of at least three exploration wells and the acquisition of an additional 1,545 square miles of 3D seismic data. Ophir says that there have been discoveries in the vicinity of Mnazi Bay immediately to the west of Block 1 and a gas discovery on Mafia Island immediately to the northwest of Block 4. Anadarko also discovered gas in the Windjammer-1 well immediately adjacent to Block 1 across the Mozambique border.

BG and Ophir say they received written consent to the joint venture from the Tanzanian government in late May.

The transaction is expected to be finalized later this month.