Wait: oil auction in Madagascar unlikely to go ahead on time
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Fresh date for Madagascar round
Madagascar's auction of 50 blocks in its Indian Ocean play looks set to take place in October, after months of political turmoil delayed the round, a senior official said today.
The round has been postponed after a military-backed coup in March last year, but Joeli Lalaharisaina, acting director general of the Office of National Mines & Strategic Industries (OMNIS), said that it would happen this year, a Reuters report said.
"I'm confident that this auction will be held (this year) despite the political situation ... as most companies are carrying on with their activities, but to be realistic, it will be in October," he told Reuters on the sidelines of an Africa energy conference.
Madagascar had planned to hold the round in November last year.
Lalaharisaina said there was no evidence of commercial oil finds in Madagascar yet, but this was expected to change soon.
"We are very optimistic that in the next two years we will have proof that there are commercial finds in Madagascar," he said.