Sri Lanka to call tenders for oil exploration in 5 blocks -minister

COLOMBO | Wed Oct 5, 2011 3:32am EDT

COLOMBO Oct 5 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka will soon call tenders for oil exploration in five blocks in the island nation's north western offshore Mannar Basin, where Cairn India Ltd. has discovered a gas deposit, the country's petroleum minister said on Wednesday.

"We will call tenders soon for the five blocks. It will be in couple of months," Petroleum Industries Minister Susil Premajayantha told Reuters, a day after he said Sri Lanka could start commercial production of natural gas within 18 to 24 months.

Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Sunday announced the discovery of a gas deposit in the seabed and Cairn said further drilling was needed to establish the commerciality of the discovery. (Reporting by Ranga Sirilal; Writing by Shihar Aneez; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/05/srilanka-exploration-idUSL3E7L50A420111005?feedType=RSS&feedName=hotStocksNews

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