Northern Petroleum has been given approval on the environmental impact assessment (EIA) of three potential exploration permits in the southern Adriatic.
The EIA approvals have been received from the Ministries of the Environment and National Heritage and are awaiting decree by the Ministry of Economic Development.
Approvals across all exploration permit applications cover the initial work programmes on the permits, which include regional geological studies and the acquisition of up to 1,450 line kms of 2D seismic data.
Keith Bush, chief executive, said: “With all the southern Adriatic EIAs approved the Company can now work with the Italian authorities to finalise the award of the permits.
“Once received, a full 2D seismic programme will be designed to evaluate the potential of the Company’s 4,500 sq km of contiguous permits and develop further opportunities similar to the Giove discovery and Cygnus exploration prospect.”