Total Likely to Get Licence to Explore for Oil, Gas in Offshore Sri Lanka

France’s energy major Total is expected sign an agreement next week with the Sri Lankan government to explore for offshore oil and gas, reported Economynext website on Wednesday.

Sri Lankan cabinet earlier this month gave a go ahead to Petroleum Resources Development Secretariat to ink the deal. Total is expected to start exploration in April or May.

"They will start by investing about 10 million dollars to acquire seismic data off the east coast of Sri Lanka,” Petroleum Resources Development Secretariat Director General Saliya Wickramasuriya said, reported Economynext.

As per the agreement, Total will get three years of exclusivity for the data it acquires after which it can be viewed by other oil companies. The government will own the data from the point of acquisition.

According to Economynext, Sri Lanka is also planning to launch a marketing campaign for the gas reserves that Cairn India had discovered and abandoned.