The Buzz | Cambodia’s first commercial extraction of oil begins

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said yesterday that the country’s long-awaited first commercial extraction of oil has finally begun.
Speaking nationwide on state television, Hun Sen said the first drop of oil was extracted by KrisEnergy, a Singapore-based oil and gas company, from a well in offshore Block A in the Gulf of Thailand, west of the coastal Cambodian province of Preah Sihanouk.
“The start of production is a blessing for our Cambodia,” Hun Sen said. “It is a first important step for Cambodia to boost its capacity to reach its goal as an oil and gas production country.”
“COVID-19 disturbed but could not destroy our attempt to produce oil,” he added.
The 3,000-square-kilometer Block A concession is estimated to hold as much as 30 million barrels of oil reserves. It was discovered in 2004, and initially held by oil giant Chevron, which sold its stake to KrisEnergy in 2014.
KrisEnergy, which was granted production rights by the government in 2017, holds a 95% share in the project, and the Cambodian government the remaining 5%.