RIYADH, Aug 7: In the aftermath of the scrapping of the three Core Venture projects and after Saudi Arabia presented its gas potential in a meeting of global oil majors in London on July 22-23, it has been reported that Occidental Petroleum Corporation and ChevronTexaco are weighing the new, emerging opportunities to participate in the exploration of Saudi Arabia’s vast gas reserves.

With situation in Iraq still uncertain and unstable, oil majors which initially were expecting a more favourable option from the US-controlled Iraqi government, it seems are starting again to look elsewhere.

“Occidental continues to evaluate exploration and production in the kingdom and hopes to be selected to participate in future opportunities as they arise,” the company said in a regulatory filing earlier the week.

Separately, on Aug 1 ChevronTexaco Chief Executive David O’Reilly told reporters his company is interested in pursuing opportunities in Saudi Arabia. “We attended the London meeting and we’re pleased to evaluate” the proposals, O’Reilly said. Saudi Arabia has “just brought forward gas areas they’re interested in exploring. There’s a lot of data. We’re just now getting our hands on what the size and the scope of the opportunities are.”

Occidental held a 20 per cent interest in the $5 billion offshore Red Sea core venture-2, led by Exxon Mobil Corporation.

On July 16, Saudi Arabia announced the agreement with the Anglo-Dutch Shell and France’s Total for an exploration and production deal covering some 200,000 square km (70,000 square miles) in the south of the country. It’s a scaled down version of the two companies’ $5 billion Shaybah core venture three project.

It has also been reported, that exploration rights to 150,000 square km (58,000 square miles) in the South Ghawar region are also being discussed. The area to be licensed comprises roughly the same area that was part of another Exxon Mobil-led consortium, the $15 billion core venture one (CV-1) with Shell, BP Plc and ConocoPhillips as minority partners in the project.

Some 50 energy companies have reportedly been invited to bid in the country’s first-ever licensing round and an auction could take place as early as the first quarter of 2004.