text: Amoco says in talks over Yemen oil acreage . NEW YORK 1996-08-28 Amoco Corp officials said the company is in talks over crude oil production sharing in Yemen , but declined to comment on a published report Amoco had reached preliminary agreement on a block in the Shabwa area . " We 've been asked ( by Yemen ) not to comment ( on the talks ) , " said Amoco spokesman Dan Dietsch . " We can neither confirm nor deny that report , " he said . According to Middle East Economic Survey ( MEES ) , Yemen and Amoco signed a " memorandum of understanding " for a production-sharing agreement in Shabwa Block No . S-1 in the former South Yemen , which united with North Yemen in 1990 . According to another Amoco official , the company is not exploring now for oil anywhere in Yemen . The officials said Amoco was deferring to the Yemeni Ministry of Petroleum and Minerals for any specific comments on the Amoco-Yemen talks . The former Soviet Union was displaced as contractor of the potentially rich Shabwa oilfields once it collapsed in December 1991 , according to the International Petroleum Encyclopedia . -- Oliver Ludwig , New York Energy Desk +1 212 859 1633