Rhino Scoping Report is ready for review
The exploration rights allow for Rhino Oil and GAs to undertake a three year early-phase exploration programme for oil and gas resources, and only includes work aimed at determining the presence of these resources. Anything further will require a new application and is not covered by the current one.
EARLIER this year, Rhino Oil and Gas paid a visit to Vryheid, voicing their intention to explore a large part of Northern KZN, including Vryheid, for oil and gas.
The community was outraged and the Rhino representatives were told in no uncertain terms to get the ‘frack’ out of town.
An application was lodged with the Petroleum Agency of South Africa (PASA) for exploration rights in April and PASA accepted. Minerals included in the exploration rights application are oil, gas, condensate, coal bed methane, helium and biogenic gas.
While this application does not allow for ‘fracking’ as yet, it is one step closer to the very real threat thereof.
The exploration rights allow for Rhino Oil and GAs to undertake a three year early-phase exploration programme for oil and gas resources, and only includes work aimed at determining the presence of these resources. Anything further will require a new application and is not covered by the current one. Permission to frack has not yet been granted to Rhino Oil and Gas. Rhino will still have to go through a series of processes until they are granted exploration rights.
According to Phillip Steyn, vice president and chief operating officer of Rhino Resources, the exploration process will only commence upon the granting of the exploration right by the regulator, which would only happen once an environmental authorisation was granted. Steyn said the evaluation process to determine if there are oil and gas resources available would take three years.
