Conference director Kathryn Granheim told EnergyReview.net that Manuel de Lemos, senior advisor to the Timor Leste Prime Minister’s Office would be showcasing the exploration opportunities available, which includes the area in which 6,500km of seismic data was acquired last year over a region of 30,000 square kilometres, which extends from the southern coastline of Timor-Leste to the northern border of the Joint Petroleum Development Area.

The seismic survey was conducted by the BGP-GGS consortium. BGP is owned by PetroChina and GGS is a Norwegian company.

Geir Ytreland, a 30-year industry veteran and now Dili-based manager of the Norwegian Government’s Norad technical assistance project said Timor-Leste is highly prospective in petroleum resources, both onshore and offshore.

“Many of the known oil-bearing rock formations in the prospective part of the Timor Sea are very similar to what is found in the North Sea," Ytreland said.

"There are also indications of potentially large hydrocarbon resources in limestone reservoirs, similar to what is seen in the Middle East. There are also dozens of onshore oil and gas seeps. This is indicative of deeper lying oil pools, derived from a petroleum system very similar to those found in the Timor Sea today.”

Information about forthcoming bid rounds can be found at www.timorseaoffice.gov.tp

SEAAOC 2005 promises to be one of the busiest ever and Granheim urged interested people to email info@iir.com.au or go to www.seaaoc.com for further details. Telephone contact details are +612 9923 5090.

Once again, SEAAOC is supported by industry with 2005 sponsors being ConocoPhillips, Woodside, AlintaMultiplex, Bechtel and Eni Australia.

The SEAAOC Conference is a joint initiative between the Institute for International Research (IIR) & the Northern Territory Government.