Malaysia and Thailand to begin oil drilling

Malaysia and Thailand to begin oil drilling

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysia and Thailand will in May begin
joint petroleum drilling activities in an area in the Gulf of
Thailand claimed by both countries, officials said yesterday.

Six exploratory wells, with investments of at least US$42
million, will be drilled this year, after more than 18 years of
suspension of drilling activity in the overlapping boundaries, a
Malaysia-Thailand Joint Authority (MTJA) statement said.

Exploration began in the disputed area after Malaysia and
Thailand signed on April 21 last year a landmark 50-year pact to
enable the MTJA to search for oil and gas in the disputed 7,250
square kilometer (4,500 square mile) area.

The pact was achieved following more than 14 years of peaceful
negotiations and compromise.

The exploration was undertaken by the Thai wing of U.S.-based
Triton Energy Corp., Malaysian oil corporation Petronas'
exploration arm Petronas Carigali, and the Petroleum Authority of
Thailand's affiliate PTT Exploration and Production.

The contractors completed the first phase of their exploration
program by jointly acquiring 12,000 line-kilometers of seismic
survey data covering the entire joint development area in
October, MTJA officials said.

Completed

"Processing of seismic data was completed early this month and
the contractors are identifying prospective subsurface geological
structures and locations for their drilling campaigns," a MTJA
spokesman said.

The MTJA was established in 1979 by the Malaysian and Thai
governments to jointly explore and exploit natural resources in
the disputed area.

Several multinational oil and gas corporations, including
British Gas plc, have expressed interest in participating in the
oil and gas exploration in the area.

According to industry estimates, the area could potentially
yield up to seven trillion cubic feet (21 billion cubic metres)
of gas.