Bahrain has chosen US oil major Texaco and Malaysian state oil corporation Petroliam Nasional (Petronas) to drill for oil and gas, reported the Gulf Daily News.
The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa.
The cabinet asked Oil Minister Sheikh Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa to "follow up measures with the two companies to begin drilling," said the paper, citing a statement.
In April, 10 international oil firms submitted bids to explore for oil and gas in Bahrain's territorial waters.
The cabinet, meanwhile, also gave final approval to a $1.7 billion (BD642.6 million) expansion project at Alba that will raise the smelter's capacity by 50 percent, said the statement.
"The cabinet approved the project and ordered Alba to take the necessary steps to implement it immediately," Sheikh Isa, also Alba chairman, said.
Bahrain in November approved in principle the plan which would add 250,000 tons a year to the smelter's current capacity of 500,000 tons – Albawaba.com
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