Norway firm dupes Lanka

A Norwegian company that conducted preliminary investigations on oil deposits off the Sri Lankan coastline and sold the data 'exclusively' to the government is now selling the same data to the global industry in direct violation of the agreement, The Sunday Times FT reliably understands. TGS NOPEC, the Norwegian company which was paid US$8 million by the Sri Lankan government for data from two dimensional (2D) seismic surveys on gas and oil exploration which the company gathered in 2005, has been selling the exact same data on the Internet through a website for US$3464, despite the fact that this data is owned by the government.

Asked to comment, Minister of Petroleum and Petroleum Resources Development A.H.M. Fowzie told The Sunday Times FT that TGS NOPEC was paid for the data and the company is no longer authorized to sell the 2D seismic data to any interested parties. "We have outright purchased the data and we have come to an agreement that they can't sell the data." He added that at the beginning, TGS NOPEC had sold the data and recovered approximately US$2 million dollars which was deducted from the US$10 million paid by the government to terminate the agreement.

Industry analysts say that clause 6.2 from the original agreement was annulled after the agreement was terminated and TGS NOPEC got the money from the Sri Lankan government. This provision, now not in force, stated that TSG NOPEC can sell the data for 10 years if the agreement ended. They said the government must ask the Norwegian company about this new development and take legal action is so desired.

The websites on which this data is being sold are:

http://energy.ihs.com/Resource-Center/Lease-Rounds/promo.htm with the home page being http://energy.ihs.com/.
Moreover, in what industry experts see as a controversial move, the Director General of the Petroleum Resources Development Committee (PRDC), Dr. Neil De Silva, has appointed Fugro Geoteam, another Norwegian company, linked with TGS NOPEC, as consultants on the licensing of three blocks in the Mannar Basin for oil and gas exploration which are open for international bids. Operating around the world, Fugro Geoteam collects and interprets data related to the earth's surface and the soils and rocks beneath and on the basis of the data, provides advice for purposes related to the oil and gas industry as well as the mining and construction industry.

De Silva, when reached by telephone, refused to comment.

The reason experts are critical of the appointment of Fugro Geoteam as consultants is that they were used by the contentious Norwegian company, TGS NOPEC, to conduct the two dimensional (2D) seismic surveys in the Mannar and Cauvery Basin in 2005. TGS NOPEC entered into a non-exclusive Seismic Data Agreement with the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) in February 2002 which experts say was flawed, resulting in the government compensating TGS NOPEC to terminate the agreement and retrieve the 2D seismic data which up to then, had been kept by the company despite the fact that the terms and conditions of the agreement explicitly stated that the data had to be turned over to the government in 30 days.

In fact, Clause 6.2 of the 2002 agreement expressly states that TGS NOPEC will report monthly to the CPC, the progressive completion of the survey and acquisition of data and will also submit to the CPC within 30 days from completion of data processing one set of deliverables.

Selling data
TGS NOPEC, in collaboration with Furgo Geoteam carried out the 2D seismic surveys and gathered the accompanying data for 4,062.62 kilometers. This information is provided on the website of a company called IHS which describes itself as 'one of the leading global providers of critical technical information, decision-support tools and related services to customers in the energy, defence, aerospace, construction, electronics and automotive industries.' IHS states that it has developed a comprehensive collection of technical information that is highly relevant to the industries they service. The company is organized into two operating segments, those being energy and engineering.

Despite Fowzie stating that the 2D seismic data is in the possession of the government and that TGS NOPEC does not have the right to sell the data, the data is being sold through the IHS website for US$4,169 but is being offered at a promotional price of US$3,464 until 31 October 2007. Industry sources told The Sunday Times FT that it is evident that TGS NOPEC, together with Fugro Geoteam, the newly appointed consultants to the PRDC, has sold the seismic data to IHS which has packaged it and is offering it to companies.