SOCO International has had its 25-year exploitation permit over the Viodo, Lideka and Loubana areas in the shallow water Marine XI Block, offshore the Republic of Congo (Brazzaville), confirmed by the country's Council of Ministers.
The applications covered areas that were previously part of the shallow water Marine XI permit, which expired at the end of March 2017 following a one-year extension.
The applications were in addition to the Lidongo permit, also formerly part of Marine XI, which was validated on 26 September 2016 by the Council of Ministers.
SOCO holds a 40.39% interest and is designated operator of each of the Lidongo, Viodo, Lideka and Loubana permit areas. Project partners in each permit are WNR, SNPC, AOGC and PetroVietnam Exploration and Production.