Representing the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy, the National Agency of Natural Resources has successfully concluded the 2-year negotiations with Shell Upstream. At the signing ceremony of this very important agreement by the Minister of Energy and Industry with the special presence of the Primer H.E. Edi Rama, took part the Executive Director of AKBN, Adrian Bylyku ​​and many experts of the agency.  The agreement was welcomed by the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Netherlands, H.E. Dewi van de Weerd, Ambassador of the United Kingdom, H.E. Duncan Norman and Chief Executive Officer of Shell-Albania, Mr. Henk van Konijnenburg, too.

Technical data of the agreement:

The search for oil in this block will be carried out in 3-phases:

– During the First Phase, which will last for 3 years, 125 km of 2D seismic works will be carried out and reprocessing of 125 km of 2D seismic profiles. The minimum financial commitment for the First Phase amounts is about 8.5 million USD

– The Second phase will last 2 years. During this phase 300 km of seismic 2D works will be carried out and 200 km of 2D seismic profiles will be reworked. During this phase, it is optional to drill a 3000 m depth search pit. The minimum financial commitment for Phase Two goes up to about $ 20 million.

– The Third phase will last 2 years. During this phase, the drilling of a search pit with a minimum depth of 3000 m will be carried out and the minimum financial commitment for this phase will reach 14 million USD.

The duration of the Contract in case of a new discovery, the Development-Production Period, will be up to 25 years with the right of extension.

About SHELL

Royal Dutch Shell represents a world leader in the hydrocarbon sector with exceptional capacity and potential, possessing the necessary expertise and financial opportunities to engage in search operations.

Royal Dutch Shell, founded in 1907, is today one of the world’s largest energy companies and operates in more than 70 countries. Shell’s history in Albania started in 1994 with the exploration of two blocks “B” and “F”. Shell Upstream Albania B.V. completed seismic research but could not drill wells due to the 1997 riots, which forced Shell to forgo major breaches of its contractual termination contract.

In 2012, Shell Upstream Albania B.V. returned to Albania to search for oil in two search blocks, those 2 and 3, initially with 50% of interest, along with Petromanas, and then, since March 2016, Shell operates alone with 100% interest in these blocks. At a time when Shell shrinked activity in many parts of the world as a result of the drastic fall in the oil price, this did not happen with Albania where the investment continued and is now expanding with another search block.