MOSCOW, April 2 (RIA Novosti) - LUKoil Overseas, the international projects operator of Russia's largest independent crude producer LUKoil, said on Thursday it would continue work to explore a deepwater oil block in Ghana.

LUKoil Overseas, U.S. Vanco Energy and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) signed on Thursday a new petroleum agreement covering the Cape Three Points Deep Water block in the West African country, the Russian company's press office said.

The new agreement defines the terms of a new stage in the block's exploration, including new 3D seismic and exploratory drilling activities.

The Cape Three Points Deep Water block covers an area of 5,146 square kilometers in water depths ranging from 200 to 3,000 meters in the Tano Basin. LUKoil Overseas holds 56.66% in the block, Vanco Energy 28.34% and GNPC 15%.

LUKoil Overseas president, Andrei Kuzyayev, said that the large oil and gas discoveries made in the past few years off Ghana meant the Cape Three Points Deep Water block was one of the most attractive areas for geological prospecting in West Africa, a strategic region for the development of the company's oil extraction projects.