Croatia to Decide Best Offshore Bidders By Mid-December, Says Spokesman
Croatia's government will decide the best bidders for its offshore blocks in mid December, trying to increase production in order to cut its gas import needs.
"Croatia currently covers about 65% of its annual gas consumption of 2,7 billion cubic metres from its own fields offshore and onshore. It hopes to be able to meet the entire local demand from the domestic wells following the new exploration efforts," Tomislav Cerovec, spokesman of the Ministry of Economy, told Natural Gas Europe.
According to note released on Tuesday, the country has received six bids.
“We are satisfied with the submitted bids. We are talking about serious companies with great experience which use the most modern technology and meet the most challenging environmental standards“, Ivan Vrdoljak, Croatian Minister of the Economy, commented in the note.
The country is also stepping up efforts to increase onshore production. It is currently running an international tender for oil and gas exploration, which expires on February 17.