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.