PA to drill for oil in West Bank

Palestinian Authority (PA) has planned to drill for oil in the West Bank.

According to the PA-based WAFA news agency, Mohammad Mustafa, the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, announced on Tuesday that the PA is requesting proposals from interested firms to explore and develop oil in the region.

The license area extends over 432 square kilometers, from north of Qalqilya to the west of Ramallah.

Initial studies have indicated that the license area may hold oil reserves ranging between 30 million and 186 million barrels.

The project as a whole is expected to generate proceeds exceeding one billion USD to the PA, including cash inflows in the form of taxes, royalties and other bonuses and payments specified in the model contract for the project, according to WAFA.