Inpex Awarded Two Exploration Block Offshore Western Australia

Inpex Corporation on Tuesday announced it has been awarded exploration permits offshore Western Australia.

The Japanese firm was awarded two blocks, WA-513-P and WA-514-P, 500km north-northeast of Broome, off the coast of the state of Western Australia. Blocks WA-513-P and WA-514-P cover an area of 335 sq.km and 415 sq. km, respectively

The blocks are situated near large gas reserves that have been discovered, including the Ichthys gas-condensate field, as well as the Prelude and Concerto gas fields.

Company subsidiary, Inpex Browse will hold a 40 percent participating interest in the blocks while Santos, the operator, will hold a 60 percent participating interest.

Inpex now holds 13 exploration permits or retention leases in the vicinity of the Ichthys gas-condensate field where as operator it is developing the world-scale Ichthys LNG project. Exploration of the blocks will help Inpex maximize the potential value of the Ichthys LNG project, the company said.