Up to 14 billion barrels of oil and gas may be found off the coast of South Korea; test drilling to begin at the end of this year; results to come in the first half of next year

The South Korean government said on the 3rd that up to 14 billion barrels of oil and gas could be in the offshore Pohang area of North Gyeongsang Province in the southeast. The first test drilling in the area is scheduled for the end of this year.
The results are expected to be released in the first half of next year. On the same day, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Ahn Deok-geun appeared on South Korea's news channel YTN and said, "We have secured the drilling ship.
"I think we will be able to start drilling in December. The results of the first drilling will be available in March or April of next year," he said. The development costs will be covered by financial support from the Korean government and other financial institutions.
The funds will be raised through overseas investment income from the National Oil Corporation and through investment invitations from overseas companies. Once the economic viability is confirmed, full-scale development and production will begin.
More than 100 billion won (about 11.4 billion yen) is expected to be invested in exploratory drilling of one oil well.
Despite the risk of failure, the South Korean government plans to provide as much financial support as possible.
"Accurate results can be obtained by doing this, so we will consult with relevant departments and the Diet during this process. The government also intends to provide maximum support," he emphasized.
According to South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the South Korean government conducted a small
The United States confirmed that there was a high possibility that there was at least 3.5 billion barrels and up to 14 billion barrels of oil and gas in the area. Based on this judgment, a five-month verification process was carried out by overseas experts and a domestic advisory group.
Oil and gas development involves the acquisition of geophysical data, computer processing, data interpretation, derivation of promising structures (structures where oil is likely to be found), exploration drilling (to explore underground resources), and
The project will be carried out in stages, including construction, development, and production. The South Korean government currently believes that there are promising oil and gas deposits deep in the Sea of Japan.
The South Korean government estimates the estimated reserves to be 75% gas and 25% oil. Gas is estimated at at least 320 million tons, up to
The South American Guyana is estimated to have 1.29 billion tons of oil, with 780 million barrels to a maximum of 4.22 billion barrels of oil.
It is possible that the discovered resources may exceed the 11 billion barrels discovered in the Ana field.