On 17 October 2019, the Argentine government granted an exploration permit for MLO-124 block to a consortium of Eni, Tecpetrol, and Mitsui & Co through the publication of Resolution 645/2019 in the nationâs official gazette following the preliminary award of the block in May 2019 as a result of the Argentina Round 1 offshore bid round. Work program in the first exploration period of four years consists of 2D seismic acquisition of 867 km, 3D seismic acquisition of 4,418 sq km, and 2D gravimetry and magnetometry acquisition of 6,500 km, followed by a drilling commitment for one well in the second exploration period of another four years. An optional third exploration period of five years is possible, although accompanied by a 50% partial relinquishment. Eni operates the block with 80% interest, followed by partners Tecpetrol and Mitsui with 10% stake each.  MLO-124 covers 4,421 sq km of deepwater area (as designated by the Argentine Secretary of Energy) in Malvinas Basin with approximated water depth below 200 m. Exploration target for the blocks in the area is expected to be oil and gas in the Springhill Formation, which has not produced from any fields on the Malvinas Basin side in comparison to the adjacent Austral Basin side where several offshore gas fields are currently producing.  The consortium lead by Eni won the rights for MLO-124 after submitting an offer of USD 67.605 million with a bonus of USD 5 million to edge out another offer by a partnership of Equinor and state company YPF of USD 27.185 million in Round 1 of the countryâs offshore bid round that ended on 16 April 2019. The concession is marked as Eniâs second offshore asset in Argentina after the Tauro-Sirius block in Austral Basin, where the company holds a 30% non-operating stake.  Background Information  The Argentine government published Resolution 276/2019 on 16 May 2019 to award 18 blocks in Austral, Malvinas, and Argentina Basin from its Round 1 of its offshore bid round with a total committed investment of USD 724 million. Granting of exploration permits from the round was originally expected to be published in early-August 2019 with signing of the permits to follow within 15 days.
Argentina, MLO-124