By an OGJ correspondent
BANGKOK, Aug. 15 -- Thailand's PTT Exploration & Production PLC (PTTEP) has agreed to farm out a 5% stake in its natural gas-prone Block M9 off Myanmar to Oman Oil Co.
PTTEP also is seeking other joint venture partners to reduce capital costs of $1 billion as it revs up to produce gas from the tract in the Gulf of Martaban, said PTTEP Pres. Maroot Mrigadat.
Myanmar will be provided with a 20% interest in Block M9 gas production, which is expected to start at 300 MMcfd in 2011 or 2012. About 210 MMcfd of this production will be transported to Thailand, and 90 MMcfd will be used domestically.
Maroot said many firms are interested in joining the Block M9 gas production venture, but PTTEP prefers those with asset-swap deals.
PTTEP plans to drill four more exploration and appraisal wells between December 2007 and April 2008 in an area other than the Zawtika and Kakonna structures where gas was discovered (OGJ Online, June 25, 2007).
Work is under way to estimate reserves in existing structures where exploration has been completed; initial estimates put those reserves at 1.5 tcf.
