Oil-rich gulf waters to be negotiated [between Cambodia and Thailand]

Wednesday April 02, 2008
YUTHANA PRAIWAN
Bangkok Post

Thailand expects to start negotiations with Cambodia on April 21 in Bangkok on offshore petroleum fields in the disputed waters in the Gulf of Thailand, according to Songpop Polachan, deputy director-general of the Department of Mineral Fuels.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs would host the first official negotiations between the two countries in the hope of reaching a conclusion over the controversial area, which covers 26,000 square kilometres.

Mr Songpop said that the Thai government was prepared to propose to Cambodia a model based on the successful Malaysia Thailand Joint Development Area and the Timor Gap Australia-Indonesia Co-operation pact.

Exploration began 30 years ago in the disputed Thai-Cambodian waters, also called the Khmer Basin. Despite the lack of concrete reports on reserves, both countries have sought to tap the overlapping area for potential undersea oil and natural gas potential.

At a time of skyrocketing global oil prices, an area potentially rich with resources proves even more valuable to both countries, which are eager to overcome the dispute and move ahead with their plans.

The two countries have not engaged in any serious talks about the offshore area for the past decade.

Cambodian officials said recently that their unofficial talks in 2006 on the issue had failed to result in a formal round because Thailand needed a larger share over the area than the 50-50 proposed by Cambodia.Thailand is currently focusing on seeking to secure as many energy sources from its neighbours as possible in order to meet its projected growth demand in the near future.

Thailand's combined crude and condensate production in local petroleum fields hit a record high in excess of 200,000 barrels per day last week, Mr Songpop added.

The additional output mainly came from the onshore Na Sanoon field in Phetchabun, operated by Pan Orient Resources Ltd, which helped boost the production to 10,000 barrels a day from 1,500 barrels. The total production was expected to double this year to catch up with the demand growth.

The department also expects PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP)'s Nang Nual offshore field to be ready to resume crude production this year after being suspended in mid-2006 due to technical errors.

The Nang Nual block was producing 18,000 barrels of crude per day before the suspension.

During the term of the former military-backed government, the Energy Ministry had made all-out efforts to seek crude and natural gas reserves locally to lessen the country's dependence on imported oil.

Last year, Thailand imported crude supplies equivalent to about 808,000 barrels, worth 703 billion baht.

Cambodia willing to resume oil talks with Thailand

Saturday, March 29, 2008
ABC Radio Australia

Cambodia says it is willing to resume stalled talks with Thailand on how to divide up offshore energy resources along their disputed sea border.

Overlapping claims to undersea oil and natural gas fields in the Gulf of Thailand has kept both countries from tapping into potentially rich reserves.

Negotiations opened in 1995 but all attempts to reach a formal agreement failed, with the last round of talks held in 2006.

Now the director-general,of Cambodia's National Petroleum Authority says talks could resume as early as next month.

Te Duong Tara says Cambodia is seeking a 50-50 split of the disputed area, while Thailand wants a larger share of the fields.

Cambodia expects to begin oil production in its own offshore fields in 2011.

Oil was discovered in Cambodia in 2005 by the US energy giant Chevron.

Thailand deports more than 100,000 Cambodian illegal workers through Poipet in 2007

Thai immigration officers deporting Cambodian workers from Thailand (Photo: Sovannara, Loh Santepheap)

Thursday, February 21, 2008
Koh Santepheap newspaper
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

Banteay Meanchey – Illegal Cambodian migrant workers including men, women, young and old, were deported back to Cambodia by the Poipet border gate on a daily basis, and there is not a single day that goes by without a single deportation. Each day, 300 to 500 of them are deported back. According to these illegal workers who were deported back, they all came from various provinces of Cambodia, and they entered Thailand by paying middlemen who led them in.

The workers said that the middlemen charged them between 2,000 to 3,000 Baths ($62 to $92) to take them to Thailand to look for work, and sometimes, after working in Thailand for a long period of time, when they want to return back to Cambodia, they have to pay middlemen to take them back across the border. These workers indicated that among the workers deported back, some of them were not arrested by the Thai authority, they surrender themselves to be arrested so they can return back home safely. Without using this tactics, their belongings and monies will all be confiscated from them.

Cambodian officials asked Cambodians who want to cross the border illegally to look for work to earn a living, to be careful not to fall into the traps of the middlemen when they arrive in Thailand. Furthermore, some workers who arrived back in Cambodia do not even have money to travel back home, even if they were promised a job by the middlemen who take them to Thailand.

Regarding these illegal migrant workers, The Cambodia Daily reported on 18 February that, Bun Hor, the cabinet chief of the Banteay Meanchey provincial office, reported last week that 105,709 Cambodians, including women and children, were deported back across the Poipet border gate, last year. Bun Hor was quoted as saying through the phone that: “These people went to work in Thailand illegally.” He added that among this group of deportees, 43,647 were women, and 8,676 were children. He believed that more than 15,000 Cambodians are still working illegally in Thailand in farming, as security guards, fishermen, cooks, market peddlers, construction workers and factory workers.

Bun Hor said that farm owners in Cambodia have a tough time providing jobs to these workers, therefore the workers went to work in farms in Thailand instead. Cambodian farms can provide only 1-2 months of work only per year, whereas in Thailand, there is work for them all yearlong.

Chatorun Chayakam, the first secretary of the Thai embassy in Cambodia, was quoted by The Cambodia Daily as saying that: “Even without any encouragement (from the Thai government), several Cambodians and Burmese cross to Thailand to look for work also. He said: “The Thai authority is doing all it can to prevent these people from entering Thailand illegally, and it arrested all these illegal workers and deported them back to Cambodia. We will not put them in jail, they will be deported back to Cambodia. They are only deported back, this is not a too serious issue, and this (daily deportation) work now becomes a routine.”

Malaysia Bidding For Oil And Gas In Cambodia [-Hun Sen's regime likely to give away 50% of Cambodian oil and gas in overlap area to Thailand]

From D.Arul Rajoo

"Cambodia is likely to opt for a 50-50 sharing agreement with Thailand to resolve the overlapping claim" - Sok An

PHNOM PENH, Nov 8 (Bernama) -- Malaysia is among dozens of countries vying for a share of oil and gas reserves in Cambodia.

The Indo-Chinese nation is expected to begin oil production in 2011, with an initial estimate of 700 million barrels in Block A.

Deputy Prime Minister Sok An said other bidders include China, France, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore and South Korea.

They have shown interest to drill oil and gas at Block A located 200km southwest of Sihanoukville, encompassing 6,278 sq km in total size area.

Currently, the US' Chevron is assessing the amount of commercial reserves, while there are also 27 more potential wells, he said.

Chevron discovered oil in 2005 off the Cambodian coast, southwest of Sihanoukville.

"We can only start production in the next decade as the processes from exploration to production take time.

"We need more studies to determine how to come out with the best formula between the companies and the government," he told the Cambodia Investment, Trade and Infrastructure conference here today.

Sok An also said there are several other potential areas, including an area of 27,000 sq km in the Gulf of Thailand, where Cambodia was involved in an overlapping claim with Thailand, as well as in Ton Sap Lake.

He said Cambodia is likely to opt for a 50-50 sharing agreement with Thailand to resolve the overlapping claim.

According to energy industry officials, the Cambodian Government is highly expected to back Chinese and American companies to undertake oil and gas productions, than regional players like Petronas and Thailand's PTT.

Petronas is currently operating two petrol stations in Cambodia.

Sok An said Cambodia was excited over the oil discovery as the country was now a net importer and was feeling the pinch of the high oil price, which was close to US$100 per barrel, with retail price above US$1 a litre here.

Besides oil and gas, Cambodia is also rich in minerals, among them are bauxite, gemstones, coal, gold and limestone.

Among companies engaged in the mining sector are world-class players like BHP Billiton and Oxiana.