plans to drill cabinda in 6 mths

http://za.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=businessNews&storyID=2006-08-03T082904Z_01_BAN330530_RTRIDST_0_OZABS-ENERGY-ANGOLA-ROCOIL-20060803.XML

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Australia's Roc Oil said on Thursday it hopes to begin onshore drilling operations in Angola's Cabinda enclave within six months, in the wake of Tuesday's agreement between central government and a separatist rebel faction.

"One would hope to drill within six months," CEO John Doran told Reuters by telephone from his company's office in Australia.

Roc Oil began onshore exploration activities in Cabinda last year and is doing seismic surveys in the region, which lies north of the main part of Angola, sandwiched between the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Roc Oil has a 60 percent stake in the Cabina South onshore block, Doran said.

Angola's extensive offshore reserves have made it the number two oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa after Nigeria. The former Portuguese colony is pumping about 1.4 million barrels per day.

It has been the scene of a separatist insurgency since winning independence from Portugal in 1975. The bid for independence from Luanda has been led by the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC).

A major faction of FLEC signed an accord with the Angolan government on Tuesday, giving special status to the restive coastal enclave.

Doran has said his group had experienced no problems related to the insurgency in Cabinda to date.

"We've been there on the ground since last year and without incident. We are not complacent, but it is a normal working environment," he said.

"The regional geology suggests it is attractive and we think it is a privilege to explore there. It is the first time in more than 30 years that anyone has explored onshore in Angola in a systematic manner," he said.

Onshore activities in Angola were also curtailed by a far larger conflict in the main part of the country between the government and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) rebel group. The conflict ended in 2002.