Bulgaria’s Energy Ministry has extended by another two years the oil and natural gas exploration permit of the 1-21 Han Asparuh offshore block in the Black Sea, granted in 2012 and already extended twice.
The decision follows the request of the two shareholders, Romanian oil and gas company OMV Petrom and French oil and gas group TotalEnergies which are asking for additional testing for potential deposits in an area that has been defined as very promising.
“I am hopeful about these ongoing efforts to discover oil and natural gas in the Bulgarian Black Sea area,” said the Minister of Energy Alexander Nikolov. “From the point of view of energy security, this is especially important for our country.”
For the next two years, the two companies are planning additional investments worth 1.46 million euros.
