By Nerijus Adomaitis
OSLO, Sept 4 (Reuters) - Thirty-three oil companiessubmitted bids for exploration blocks offshore Norway in aso-called predefined areas (APA) licensing round, the Ministryof Oil and Energy said on Wednesday.
This year's round comprised 48 blocks in the Arctic BarentsSea, 37 blocks in the Norwegian Sea and five in the NorthSea.
Bidders included oil majors Shell, ConocoPhillipsand Total. Equinor, Aker BP, Lundin Petroleum, DNO and Eni'sVaar Energi were also on the list.
A number of private-equity-backed firms bid, such asCrysoar, which this year acquired ConocoPhillips assets in theBritish North Sea, and Neptune Energy. So did Russia's Lukoiland RN Nordic, a wholly owned Rosneftsubsidiary.
"This shows that there is high interest from the companies,"Oil Minister Kjell-Boerge Freiberg told a news conference.
"Identifying more resources through exploration is vital forNorwegian employment, future value creation and our welfarestate," he added.
After processing the applications, the ministry aims toaward licenses in early 2020.
Annual APA rounds are aimed at expanding acreage aroundalready explored areas, where new discoveries can be tied in tothe existing pipelines and platforms.
Separate from the APA awards, Norway also conducts numberedlicensing rounds, which include frontier parts of the Norwegiancontinental shelf, such as the remote eastern Barents Sea whereany field development will be more expensive.
The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate estimates thattwo-thirds of Norway's undiscovered oil and gas resources are inthe Barents Sea, but exploration results have been disappointingin the last few years.
The APA applications give reason to believe oil firms willalso continue to seek more acreage in frontier areas, Freibergsaid.
"I'm optimistic, because we see historically high interestin the Barents Sea from this round," he added.
The government aims to announce the next numbered licensinground before Norway's 2021 general election, but must firstagree an updated plan on areas to exempt due to environmentalconcerns, particularly in the Barents.(Editing by Terje Solsvik; Editing by Dale Hudson)
