UK independent Cairn Energy has farmed into a trio of blocks offshore NW Africa’s Senegal as operator.

The transaction will add a number of drillable prospects to the company’s frontier exploration inventory and drilling program in the next 18 months, it said. The three contiguous blocks – Rufisque, Sangomar and Sangomar Deep – are currently operated by Australia’s FAR Ltd. with Petrosen (the Senegal NOC) as partner. The blocks cover an area of 7,490sq km in the Mauritania-Senegal-Guinea-Bissau basin. The acreage is covered by a 2,050sq km 3D seismic survey and a number of play types, leads and prospects have been identified.

Cairn plans to acquire a 65% working interest and operatorship by fully funding the 100% costs of one exploration well to an investment cap. Afterward, exploration costs will be apportioned to Cairn 72.2% (WI 65%), FAR 27.8% (WI 25%), and Petrosen 0% (WI 10%).

Cairn also will pay 72.2% of costs incurred on the blocks by FAR to date, a total of US $10m.