China’s Cnooc Looks for Gulf of Mexico Oil Partners
- Company won rights to develop two deep-water areas in Mexico
- Cnooc looks to farm out areas near U.S. maritime border
Vessels gather near Transocean Ltd.'s Development Driller III, right, at the BP Plc Macondo well site in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana, U.S., on Thursday, July 29, 2010. BP Plc may move up the schedule for a static kill attempt, which would involve pumping mud and cement to permanently plug its leaking Macondo oil well in the Gulf of Mexico. Thursday marked the 100th day of the largest oil spill in U.S. history, which began when the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded on April 20.
Photographer: Derick E. Hingle/BloombergCnooc Ltd. is searching for partners to develop oil prospects deep into the Gulf of Mexico as the Chinese giant extends its global reach.
After bidding alone for exploration rights in Mexico’s first-ever deep-water auction in 2016, Cnooc is seeking deals known as farmouts, a common type of joint venture where a stake in an oil prospect is exchanged for help with drilling and production. The company has yet to choose partners, a Beijing-based spokeswoman for Cnooc said Friday.