BANGKOK, 21 September 2011 – Energy Minister Pichai Naripthaphan has held a bilateral talk with Cambodia during ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM) at Brunei Darussalam.
After the discussion, the Minister said there was a high tendency that both countries would continue with the petroleum project on the continental shelf in the Gulf of Thailand, where great promise of oil and gas development lies. The project was halted since 2001 due to the overlapping area dispute.
Mr Pichai stated the discussion only included the overlapping sea area; not the current dispute over the 4.6-kilometer area around Preah Vihear Temple. He added the petroleum project would be discussed openly.
The Energy Minister said the project is important to Thailand as it would benefit from it. The gas reserve in the Gulf of Thailand has been low, leaving the resource enough for use only for 16 years.
