
The fourth British company licensed to explore in Falkland Islands waters, Borders and Southern Ltd announced preparations were “well underway” for a drilling campaign to the south of the Islands.

Licences to drill for oil in Falkland Islands territorial waters were issued by the Falklands’ government, not by London, and Islanders are entitled to do this by the terms of the Joint Declaration over Oil issued by the Argentine and British governments in 1995, said Falklands Government Representative in London Sukey Cameron.

Brazilian government managed energy firm Petrobras announced this week it had made two separate discoveries of oil in the Campos Basin near Brazil's coast with recoverable reserves of 40 million and 25 million barrels.

FOUR days into a drilling operation that has captured the attention of the world’s media, Desire Petroleum’s Operations Director Bob Lyons conceded: “This is it: we’re a one trick pony. It’ll either be successful or it won’t. It is very simple.”

United Kingdom oil and gas companies drilling near the Falklands Islands may become takeover targets this year, Deloitte & Touche LLP said in a report released Thursday in London.

Spanish-Argentine Oil Company Repsol-YPF announced Thursday that it will drill for oil in an area near the Falkland Islands beginning next November /December.

Latin American oil and gas firm GeoPark Holdings Ltd announced this week it had successfully tested two new oil wells on the Fell Block, Springfield formation, Magallanes basin in the extreme south of Chile, bordering Argentina and the Atlantic access of the Magellan Strait.

The Falkland Islands reaffirmed its right to develop a hydrocarbons industry and anticipated that in spite of disruptive measures from Argentina the oil drilling round will commence as planned early next week, “weather permitting”.

Annual wind power contribution in the Falkland Islands is set to rise to 40% of total energy generated with the installation of three new wind turbines, which started going online on 15 February. The installation of the first three wind turbines in 2007 has resulted in the displacement of 26% of annual fuel consumption and the aim with the three new turbines is to reach 40% fuel displacement.

DRILLING in Falklands waters will go ahead as planned despite an Argentine decree aimed at handicapping shipping movement between the Islands and South America. From London British Foreign and Commonwealth Minister Chris Bryant reiterated that “we have no doubt about our sovereignty over the Falkland Islands and we're clear that the Falkland Islands Government is entitled to develop a hydrocarbons industry within its waters”.