Eric Watkins
Senior Correspondent
LOS ANGELES, July 10 -- Thailand's PTT Exploration & Production PLC discovered a large offshore natural gas deposit in Myanmar's Gulf of Martaban, according to state media.
The New Light of Myanmar newspaper said PTT discovered a deposit of gas estimated at 8 tcf. PTT confirmed the discovery but declined to comment on the specific amount of gas in the reserve.
The appraisal well, Zawtika-5, reached a TD of 2,527 m and encountered seven zones of gas-bearing formation with a total thickness of 100½ m. It was the eighth well (four exploration and four appraisal wells) drilled on that block, which lies 300 km south of Yangon (OGJ Online, June 25, 2007).
PTTEP Pres. Maroot Mrigadat said the field shows promising potential for further development, but added that a precise estimate of the reserves awaited additional exploration.
PTTEP plans to start production from the block, designated M-9, next April. The field will likely be one of Thailand's main sources of gas, Mrigadat said.
PTTEP signed a production-sharing contract with Myanmar for exploration and production of oil and gas from Block M-9 in November 2003.
Contact Eric Watkins at [email protected].
