MANILA, Philippines—Australian firm Nido Petroleum Ltd. is set to drill five more exploration wells off Palawan within the next two years to help unlock the potential of its top 15 prospects, which are estimated to yield a combined resource of 2.9 billion barrels.
In a presentation, Nido Petroleum CEO Phil Byrne bared plans of drilling a well at the Lawaan prospect, as covered by Service Contract 54A; Pawikan prospect within SC 54B; Balyena prospect in SC 58; and Aboabo and Apribodo prospects in SC 63.
The proposed drilling of these areas between November this year and January 2014 is expected to yield some 1.18 billion barrels of oil at a total cost of $90 million.
“I am excited about the potential of this portfolio as many of our exploration prospects have been matured to ‘drill ready’ status following seismic programs and rigorous technical evaluation,” Byrne said.
“My plan is to unlock this potential through a sustainable exploration drilling program. The five-well drilling program outlined in detail in the attached presentation is aimed at delivering this objective and will commence with at least one well in SC 63 during 2012,” he explained.
On the development front, Byrne said that Nido Petroleum would be focusing on progressing the Galoc Phase 2 development as covered by SC 14 C1 and the West Linapacan re-development (SC 14C2), which have been in various stages of planning.
“One of my biggest priorities during 2012 will be to achieve board approval for the Phase 2 development of the Galoc oilfield, with a view toward augmenting our oil reserves and production position in the near term,” Byrne added.
According to Byrne, the proposed Phase 2 development will see as many as three wells being drilled in order to increase the field resource by 4 to 6 million barrels and extend the life of the field to 2018. The cost of drilling for two exploration wells was estimated at $130 million.
These wells may be drilled in the northern portion of the Galoc structure to boost production and access undeveloped reserves. Drilling is expected to take place by 2013.