Uruguay to Tender 17 Offshore Blocks for Exploration

Uruguayan state oil company Ancap said on Tuesday it will tender 17 off-shore blocks for exploration in areas up to 3,000 meters deep, with offers to be presented in April 2019.

 

The tender, called Uruguay Round III, will be launched in Houston in September.

 

"Ancap is working with the ministry of industry and energy in the preparation of the model contract," the company's General Manager Ignacio Horvath said during an oil industry conference in Uruguayan resort town Punta del Este on the Atlantic coast.

 

Uruguay is a net oil importer. In 2009 and 2012 it held Rounds I and II respectively, signing exploration contracts with companies including BP and YPF.

 

The blocks to be tendered include areas in the Eastern del Plata and Punta del Este maritime basins, which reach up to 3,000 meters deep.