Deal Or No Deal: Sri Lanka Pulls 2 Blocks From Offer

Despite promising seismic surveys, a dearth of bids on two of the three offshore blocks offered by Sri Lanka resulted in the country pulling the two blocks from consideration.

Sri Lanka plans to "evaluate the [block] with the most competition first," according to The Colombo Times of Sri Lanka.

"We decided only to evaluate where there is a competition of three [companies] … once that is over we will consider the other two," said Sri Lanka Petroleum Resource Minister AHM Fowzie. "We will award [the block] to the bidder who will give most profits to the government."

The three blocks, located in the Mannar basin, received six tenders in January from Cairn Energy, ONGC and Nico Resources. One block received bids from all three companies, two companies bid for the second block and only one company bid for the third block.