The prospects of success for the 6th licensing round for new oil and gas exploration areas are still limited. The government has circulated information about the interest of several oil multinationals, such as Exxon Mobil, Total Energies, Eni, Rosneft and Novatec, Sinopec, CNOOC, CNPC and Petro China International, Qatar Petroleum, Sasol, ONGC Videsh, Discovery Exploration and Aiteo.

Local sources minimize the significance of the participation of the aforementioned oil companies, justifying the involvement of multinationals as a mere expression of interest in analyzing the dossier, through the delivery of a letter of intent for the purpose. This step is far from implying that they will go ahead with concrete tender proposals. READ MORE