Oman leans towards bilateral awards

The sultanate’s drawn-out bid round is ending in a whimper as breakout gas contracting discussions take priority

Oman’s future licensing rounds are likely to be replaced with direct negotiations unless more enticing acreage is to be carved out of its former block 6 area, after a single award in its most recent bid round. In early July 2020, Sweden’s Tethys Oil was confirmed as the sole winning bidder in its 2019 licensing round. The firm—which is an Omani success story, already holds stakes in blocks three and four (30pc), 49 (100pc) and 56 (20pc) and has previously sought to expand this footprint further—has been awarded block 58, which covers 4,557km2, spanning the western flank of the South Oman Salt Basin and the Western Deformation Front. Launched last February, the bid round covered five previous