Talisman Energy, Mitsubishi form natural gas JV in Papua New Guinea

Talisman Energy and Mitsubishi Corporation have entered into a joint venture deal to aggregate natural gas in Papua New Guinea.

Mitsubishi will pay about $280m for nine of Talisman’s onshore licences in Papua New Guinea’s onshore Western Province and will work in upstream exploration, production and LNG project development.

Talisman Energy International Operations East executive vice-president Paul Blakeley said that Mitsubishi brings extensive experience in LNG development and marketing and will be a key success factor in helping Talisman unlock the value of Papua New Guinea assets.

Through the farmout, both companies aim to increase the potential LNG exports to about 3 million metric tonnes per annum and will concentrate on the aggregation and monetisation of gas and condensate liquids in the Western Province.

Mitsubishi noted the natural gas joint venture with Talisman will boost the economy of Papua New Guinea and result in more liquefied natural gas exports to Japan, ensuring a stable energy supply.

Talisman has interests in nine petroleum prospecting licences (PPLs) and five petroleum retention licences (PRLs), covering 13.7 million acres and has acquired about 1,550km of 2D seismic and the drilling of eight wells so far.

The company expects to begin a four-well drilling programme on PPLs 235 and 261 this year and participate in ongoing appraisal in PRL 21.