Conoco strikes Vietnam oil

Conoco strikes Vietnam oil

HANOI (Reuters): Conoco Inc said it and foreign and local partners have discovered oil off Vietnam's southeast coast with an exploratory well flowing 5,600 barrels per day (bpd).

A Conoco statement said the find was from the first well drilled in Vietnam's block 15-1. It said tests in other parts of the block would continue in coming weeks but no further details were given.

The block, near the Bach Ho, Ruby and Rang Dong fields, is about 180 km (112 miles) southeast of Ho Chi Minh City in 47 meters (154 feet) of water.

"This discovery confirms our belief that there are exciting prospects in Vietnam and we are looking forward to further exploration and development in the area," said Rob McKee, Conoco's executive vice president for exploration and production, in the statement.

Conoco has a 23.25 percent interest in the block. Its partners are state-run PetroVietnam with 50 percent, Korean National Oil Corp with 14.25 percent, South Korea's SK Corp with nine percent and France's Geopetrol 3.5 percent.