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Rosneft starts drilling exploration well offshore Vietnam

Rosneft is currently involved in projects of gas and condensate production and exploration in two blocks offshore Vietnam

MOSCOW, March 9. /TASS/. Rosneft Vietnam BV, a subsidiary of Russian state-owned oil company Rosneft has started drilling exploration well offshore Vietnam, Rosneft said in a press release on Wednesday.

This is the first time Rosneft is operating a drilling project, in International waters confirming the Company's competence and ability to implement technically complex drilling programs offshore, the company said.

"The design depth of the well will be around 1,380 m, while the sea depth in the area is about 162 m. The expected recoverable reserves of natural gas in the PLDD (name of the well -TASS) geological structure are estimated at 12.6 bcm, and 0.6 mt of gas condensate which can be developed by subsea completion and tied-back to the existing Lan Tay platform operated by Rosneft in Block 6.1. The drilling will be performed using the Hakuruyu-5 drilling rig owned and operated by Japan Drilling Co., Ltd (JDC). Rosneft announced the signing of agreement with JDC at the Eastern Economic Forum-2015," according to the press release.

Following PLDD the company will drill another exploration well also in the Nam Con Son basin. Incorporating the two wells into the same program will ensure synergy between the two projects and help reduce the timelines for implementation of the works, thus maximizing the efficiency of exploration projects at the company’s Vietnamese assets, the company said.

According to the press release, Rosneft Vietnam BV also plans to shoot broadband 3D seismic of its existing Block 6.1 operatorship later this year to enhance ongoing production recovery and explore potential in deeper prospects.

Commenting on the drilling start, Rosneft Chairman of the Management Board Igor Sechin said: "Rosneft team has already demonstrated their competence in Russia during the successful drilling of the world's northernmost well in the Kara Sea, which resulted in the discovery of a new deposit, the Pobeda field. Today, the Company starts a similar project as a drilling operator in international waters. I am sure that the experience gained in Vietnam will be used by the Company not only in its activity in the southern seas; these competences will find application in planning and implementation of upstream projects in remote areas. I would especially like to emphasize that this project is an example of advanced cooperation with the Company's partners in the Asia-Pacific: Petrovietnam and ONGC. We appreciate not only the current progress of progress of joint projects implementation in Vietnam, but also the future prospects for their development."

Rosneft is currently involved in projects of gas and condensate production and exploration in two blocks offshore Vietnam. Rosneft also owns 32.67% of the Nam Con Son pipeline, which delivers gas and condensate from the offshore blocks of the Nam Con Son basin to the onshore power generation complex. In 2015, the gas produced in Block 06.1 provided about 12% of the energy needs in Vietnam.