Total Farms Into Bokhtar PSC Area In Tajikistan With 33.335% Interest

Total said Friday that it had signed an agreement with Kulob Petroleum, a subsidiary of Tethys Petroleum, to farm into the Bokhtar PSC Area in Tajikistan with a 33.335% interest.

Under the agreement, signed jointly with state-owned CNODC (a subsidiary of CNPC) of China, Total and CNODC will each hold a 33.335% interest in the PSC, while Kulob will retain a 33.33% stake. The agreement is subject to the approval of the Tajikistan government.

The Bokhtar PSC covers an area of 35,000 square kilometers at the eastern end of the prolific Amu Darya Basin. A number of giant gas discoveries have already been made in the basin’s Jurassic carbonate reservoirs.

On completion of the transaction, Total will acquire an interest in the Tajikistani sector of the Amu Darya Basin, it will be partnered with CNPC.

Operations will be conducted jointly, through an operating company. Tethys has already acquired seismic data with the intention of identifying the location of the first exploration well by end-2014.

“This acquisition is aligned with our bolder exploration strategy and positions Total in one of the world’s most prolific gas basins,” said Michael Borrell, Senior Vice President, Continental Europe Central Asia, Total Exploration & Production. “The partnership between Total, CNPC and Tethys is particularly well equipped to conduct successful exploration and potentially develop a value-creating project.”