The Irish government has decided to undertake a seismic survey at a cost of EUR20m at the country’s Atlantic coast in an effort to attract oil and gas exploration companies.
According to the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, it is expected to be the largest regional seismic study in offshore Ireland and will also serve as a scientific study for the broader research industry.
Italy-based multinational oil and gas company Eni’s subsidiary Eni Ireland, which is involved in several exploration licenses in the Irish offshore, will perform the survey jointly with the department in the Atlantic waters of the Irish-designated Continental Shelf.
The department will bear nearly 20% of the survey cost, which will come through a research fund generated by income from the industry and contributed through license obligations.
Eni will bear the remaining cost for the survey, while the state will retain the rights to all data collected during the process, reported Indepnedent.ie.
Ireland Natural Resources Minister Fergus O’Dowd, who granted approval for the survey, was quoted by the publication as saying that it will provide a regional grid of high-quality seismic data over Ireland’s frontier basins.