Vol. 574 No. 1
121 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the main features of the recently announced revised terms for licensing option authorisation for oil and gas exploration; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26272/03]
The revised terms modify the details governing the duration and cost of the former scheme. Under the revised terms, the duration of the authorisation shall be for a period of one, two or three years, but a shorter period may be agreed for particular work programmes. The authorisation may be extended for a further period of 12 months. Previously, the duration was normally for a period of 12 months, with some as long as two years, and could be extended for 12 months. In addition, the rental fees payable on the authorisations have been reduced to those for phase 1 of frontier exploration licence which is €27 per square kilometre. This rate will apply also to any extension beyond the original duration.
The objectives are to rejuvenate exploration in the Celtic Sea, and possibly other areas in the future, and to make the licensing option a more attractive measure for promoting exploration activity in offshore Ireland. I am concerned that exploration interest and activity levels in offshore Ireland have declined in the past five years and are currently at a very low level. While this decline reflects similar patterns in other countries in north-west Europe, the Government is anxious to maintain exploration activity at a sustainable level and to make the sector more accessible to small and independent companies.
The revised terms recognise the need for Ireland to make its Celtic Sea exploration rental terms more competitive and flexible along the lines adopted by the UK in its "Promote" programme, which applied to the recent North Sea round. The revised terms are designed to appeal to small to medium sized companies in the sector which are more willing than the larger companies to identify and develop smaller and marginal fields.
