WINDHOEK, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell isto drill offshore Namibia, a growing area of interest for oiland gas explorers, the southern African country's mines andenergy minister said on Monday.
Shell has taken over exploration blocks 2913A and 2914B inthe Orange Basin from Signet Petroleum, with the Anglo-Dutchgroup acquiring a 90 percent stake in the two blocks andNamibian national oil company Namcor keeping its 10 percentcarried interest.
Signet Petroleum's 42 percent shareholder Polo Resources, which is listed on London's junior AIM market, said ina statement last week that Signet had sold its interests in thetwo blocks, "to a major international oil company in aconfidential transaction".
Polo gave no indication of how much the interest had beensold for except to say that it expected a "significant return"for Polo, which would provide additional details as they becomeavailable. ()
Best known for its uranium reserves, Namibia is attractinginterest from oil and gas companies keen to explore its offshorepotential, which has been likened to Brazil's Santos basin.
"The Ministry of Mines and Energy is very excited about theinterest shown by a super-major such as Shell Exploration andProduction in Namibia," Mines and Energy Minister Isak Katalisaid in a statement on Monday.
A spokeswoman at Royal Dutch Shell in South Africa declinedto comment immediately, saying the company was still formulatinga response.
Shell was involved in exploration work around the Kudu gasfield in the Orange Basin, the only economically feasible fossilfuel find made so far in Namibian waters, but dropped out in2002.
Spanish company Repsol said in October last year itwould drill its first well in Namibian waters as early asFebruary or March, the Welwitschia-1 well in the Walvis Basin,in partnership with London-based Tower Resources.
