Minerals Report - International Seabed Authority

In Southeast Asia, Dr. Vysotsky spoke about the Kalimantan basin
on the delta of the river Mahatang. He said that this basin spreads into the
Sea of Celebes where the ocean depth is about 5,000m. He said that a
company has bought about 12 wells at a depth of 900-1,400 m. In five of
them, reserves of oil were opened. He said that exploration is taking place
in this area.
Dr. Vysotsky pointed out that in Australia, about 5 big offshore oil
fields have been opened. With regard to Russia, Dr Vysotsky said that
while it has the longest northern sea area, this area is not a deep-water
area. He said that thirteen petroleum fields have been opened in the
Barents Sea, not far from Norway.
He said that the largest gas area has been discovered here with
reserves of 2.7 trillion m 3 , and that it is to be in operation in 2006
producing about 20 billion tonnes per year. He said that this field is
situated at a depth of 350 m. Dr. Vysotsky said that another interesting
area for Russia is in the Sea of Okhotsk. He noted that while there are
some sedimentary basins that are in deep water the resources are not big,
not more than 2 billion tonnes of oil.
Finally through a diagram published 2 months earlier, Dr.
Vysotsky informed participants that it is estimated that during 1999-2004,
US$76 billion will be spent on petroleum and gas exploration of deep-sea
areas. He said that a large portion of this amount would be spent in North
America, in the Gulf of Mexico, and in Latin America in the Campos Basin.
Dr. Vysotsky concluded his presentation by pointing out that all over the
world, the exploration of the deep-sea areas is being actively conducted,
and that for the last 10 years, large fields have been opened only in deep
waters.
SUMMARY OF DISCUSSIONS
The discussions that followed Dr. Vysotsky’s presentation focused
on the oil and gas potential of the Caspian Sea, the relationship of the price
of oil and gas with exploration activity, and the potential for oil and gas
production from the Area.
INTERNATIONAL SEABED AUTHORITY 514