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BELIZE
Central America
Belize lies south of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and
east of neighbouring Guatemala. It is the second smallest nation in the
Americas, and the only Central American country without a Pacific Ocean
coast.
Formerly known as British Honduras, it gained
independence from Britain in 1981. Exploration dates back to the 1950s
when small amounts of non-commercial oil were found. Around 51 wells
have been drilled.
Belize Natural Energy Ltd. was said to have discovered
commercial oil reserves with three wells onshore Belize in 2005 after
signing an agreement in 2002 for an exploration license covering 595,000
acres. Production reportedly flowed from two Cretaceous zones; the Yalbac and Hill Bank formations. Both are believed to have equivalents
in the producing Coban formation in Guatemala.
Initial production of 500 bbls per day from the discovery
well rose to 2,800 through additional drilling and development. The
discovery is near Spanish Lookout, east of Guatemala’s largest oil field
and northwest of Belmopan, Belize’s capital.
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