Belize’s Director of Geology and Petroleum, Andre Cho, has indicated to Amandala that the statements by Treaty Energy Corporation, joint venture partner of Princess Petroleum, which has a concession to explore for oil both onshore and offshore Belize, proclaiming an oil find associated with a 6-million-barrel reserve in Stann Creek are “misleading.”
According to Cho, there was no evidence of live oil, only trace tar, which, he said, “is common in a lot of rocks.”
The Government of Belize, through the Department of Geology and Petroleum, issued a press release on Tuesday, January 31, 2012, indicating a find of “…only minute traces of tar, which is commonly observed in rock formations in many wells previously drilled in Belize that were not commercial.”
Prime Minister Dean Barrow told us today that “Treaty did not follow the prescribed procedure” before making the announcement via press wire in the US.
Cho said that Treaty informed his department on Saturday, January 28, that a find had been made on Friday; he said that the proper procedure was for the company to await government verification before making any such announcement.
Treaty Energy is not backing down from its claim, however, and in a statement issued yesterday, Wednesday, February 1, the company said it “…has further reviewed its finding and confirms its discovery of oil on the Stann Creek Field in Southern Belize.”
It went on to say: “There were no asphaltenes (tar) present.”
“Our independent logger made a visual analysis with microscope and black light and confirmed the presence of hydrocarbons,” said Treaty.
Cho told Amandala that he visited the well site on Monday, January 30, and took samples for analysis.
“We inspected the mud log and rock cuttings from the depth they said they found oil and discussed with their geologist from field,” said Cho. He added that what they found was more trace amounts of tar—and it is not live oil.
He added that they looked at the samples and rock cuttings, and tested them, and no live oil was found.
The trace tar is an indication that the oil that may have been generated in that area migrated elsewhere, he added.
As for Treaty’s claims that up to 6 million barrels of oil is at the field upon which the San Juan well sits, Cho said: “They have not done any kind of testing to make those kinds of calculation.”
Government has to look at whether there are penalties, Cho asserted.
Amandala sought an audience with Treaty CEO Andrew Reid, who arrived in Belize Tuesday for meetings, but we could not get him via phone and he did not return our calls.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Dean Barrow said that he believes Mr. Cho, that no live oil was found in Stann Creek, and he suspects Treaty Energy made the announcement to get more financing from the price leaps in their shares in the US that resulted from the announcement of an oil find in Belize.
As for Treaty’s business with his law firm, Prime Minister Barrow told us he does not know anything.
Last May, our newspaper picked up on documents Treaty had posted on its website, detailing the minutes of a one-hour meeting at Barrow & Williams, the Prime Minister’s law firm, at 99 Albert Street, at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, May 29, 2011.
Oddly, we accessed the documents several days before that date.
When we asked Prime Minister Barrow about Treaty Energy’s business with his law firm, he told us he does not know that Treaty does any business with them, and asked us to check with his law partner, Rodwell Williams, SC.
When we called Williams subsequently, however, we were advised that he was not in office.