In Madagascar, Sterling Energy has revealed plans to withdrawal from the Ambilobe block and hand over its operatorship to its joint venture partner Pura Vida.

This announcement is coming after the partners reported this week that they were considering whether to forge ahead with the Phase 3 of their prospects on Ambilobe Block as the Phase 2 of the Ambilobe PSC will expire in July 2016.

The JV partners had received both Ministerial and Presidential approval in October 2014 to prolong the current phase of both the Ampasindava and Ambilobe PSCs to July 2016.

According to Sterling, after the withdrawal has been finalized by the end of July 2016, it will no longer be the operator of the Ambilobe block and does not anticipate to gain any material expenses related to the withdrawal.

“We would like to record our sincere thanks for the productive and mutually beneficial relationship we have enjoyed with our joint venture partner Pura Vida, all of the teams at Office des Mines Nationales et des Industries Stratégiques (OMNIS) and the Government of Madagascar in relation to the Ambilobe Block. Sterling has held an interest in the Ambilobe Block since 2004 and recently completed a fully carried 1,175km² discretionary 3D survey in 2015. Given the challenging commercial landscape, we have made the disciplined decision to exit, focusing on shorter cycle revenue generating assets. We wish Pura Vida and OMNIS all the best for the future in unlocking the remaining potential on the Ambilobe Block,” Eskil Jersing, the Sterling Energy's CEO told Energy-pedia.

Anita Fatunji