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Australian firms Nido Petroleum Ltd. and Kairiki Energy Ltd. plan to
increase the number of exploration wells under the drilling program
of their jointly held service contract area in the Philippines.
In a statement, Jon Pattillo, Nido exploration
head, said the company may increase the number of oil and gas
exploration wells it plans to put up in service contract 54 (SC 54)
from “one well at Gindara to three” in order to accelerate its
shallow water program in the area.
The joint venture partners previously planned to
drill at least two shallow water wells at the end of 2008 followed
by the drilling of a deeper well in the Gindara prospect in 2009.
The Gindara block is located in offshore North
West Palawan. The area is projected to be on a par with the
Shell-operated Malampaya natural gas field, which has estimated
recoverable resources of 600 million barrels of oil equivalent.
Initial studies conducted by the two companies
on the seismic data covering the prospect indicate it has the
capacity to accommodate more than 478 million barrels of oil.
Joanne Williams, Nido deputy managing director,
said the company’s plan to expand its drilling program in the bloc
is in lieu of significant finds whose “drilling opportunities are
considered very low risk.”
Should the evaluation prove successful at
year-end, Williams added the current high oil prices in the world
market represent material opportunity for near-term cash-flow
potential. “Current record oil prices of over 120 Australian
dollars per barrel provide the perfect environment for the
evaluation of this area. We intend to kick off the evaluation of
the shallow water area with the drilling of at least two wells,”
she said.
Nido, which operates SC 54, holds a 60-percent
equity in the bloc, while Kairiki controls the remaining 40 percent.
-- Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo
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