Landward licensing round

In a written statement to the House of Commons energy minister Malcolm Wicks invited applications for Petroleum Exploration and Development Licenses PEDL for unlicensed blocks in central Scotland, south east and north east Wales, as well as regions in the north, west and south of England.

Commenting on the latest round Wicks said: "We have seen increased interest in license applications for both off and onshore exploration in recent years. This is to be welcomed as oil and gas production remains central to the UK's security of energy supply. Although Landward Licensing Rounds are not as significant as the Offshore Rounds there is nevertheless an active onshore sector with some very valuable fields in production and a real desire amongst the industry to find more.

In July the government invited applications for onshore oil and gas licences under the 14th Landward Licensing Round. Figure 2. Indeed, the latest offshore bidding round, the Fourth Offshore and Lake Tanganyika North Licensing Round , which opened in October and closed on 15 May , was considered a failure by TPDC officials, as it produced few bids and no new concessions Mgaya , Bofin and Pedersen Moreover, this project can assist the ACC to combat the roots of corruption, it will also improve business conditions, political stability, employment conditions, productivity and financial stability.

Sample 1. Sample 2. Sample 3. Licensing Round means the process being undertaken pursuant to this Submission of Applications Guidance Note to select an Applicant for each Block.

Licensing Round means the process being undertaken pursuant to this Call for Tenders to select an Applicant for each Block. Examples of Licensing Round in a sentence I took the liberty to lay your valuable suggestions before theInstitute. Similarly, during the third term of a licence the production phase , in order to protect any remaining PEDL acreage that is neither a Retention Area nor a Development Area from land-banking, where licensees retain but take no steps to develop areas of the PEDL, DECC may revoke the acreage and offer it for re-licensing.

When submitting a development programme for a Development Area, a licensee must now state the latest date by which it will obtain petroleum from each defined Development Area. In addition, where a Development Area relates to production of shale or coal-seam gas, a Development Area Plan must be submitted setting out the proposed development activities with defined timescales for achieving them. Designation of the new areas is intended by DECC to promote the economic success of shale development.

Additionally, Retention Areas may be defined in three dimensions rather than two, in recognition of the way coal bed methane and shale gas may be dispersed at different depths, in contrast to conventional oil and gas reservoirs.

DECC is clearly also exerting more pressure on licensees to work to, and keep to, a defined timescale for development of shale resources with a view to expediting the economic return. A new exception to the confidentiality provision in the Model Clauses means that DECC will only be required to respect six months confidentiality for reports from licensees that contain data relating to geology, operations or results associated with the fracking of shale.

All other information supplied to DECC by a licensee will continue to be kept confidential for four years. The significantly reduced confidentiality period in relation to information on fracking operations reflects the tighter monitoring and controls DECC will be exerting over unconventional exploration and production activities.

In addition to changes designed to promote unconventional hydrocarbon development, the new Model Clauses have also introduced changes to align the terms of PEDLs with the current Model Clauses applicable to offshore seaward production licences. Incorporating the drill-or-drop concept seen in seaward licences by providing for early termination of the PEDL at the end of a specified period if the drill-or-drop obligations in a work programme have not been complied with, or a licensee has not undertaken the remainder of a work programme at the end of the initial term.

Inserting the duration of the various terms of the licenses into a new Schedule attaching to the PEDL. This means that minimum work obligations in an initial term need to be completed in a short timeframe, demonstrating once again DECCs interest in expediting shale exploitation.