Talisman Energy Inc. said its Weimang-1 exploratory well in Papua New Guinea found gas in line with predrill expectations.

Wintershall Norge AS disclosed that it drilled a dry hole at the 33/6-4 wildcat on Production License 370 in the North Sea 25 km northwest of Statfjord Nord field.

A Marathon Oil Corp. unit has closed farmouts under which Total SA acquired 35% working interests in the Harir and Safen blocks northeast of Erbil in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

Repsol SA has agreed subject to regulatory approvals to take a 44% working interest in and become operator of License 0010 offshore northwestern Namibia, said Tower Resources PLC.

Statoil Petroleum AS has spudded the 16/2-12 exploratory well on the Geitungen structure in the North Sea midway between the Johan Sverdrup discovery and the Aldous Major North discovery offshore Norway.

Oil India Ltd. and GeoGlobal Resources Inc., Calgary, have an oil discovery on the RJ-20 block in Rajasthan, India.

The partnership drilling the Shabeel North exploratory well in Puntland, Somalila, has elected to deepen the well to 3,400 m from 2,200 m to evaluate the Lower Cretaceous and Jurassic sections.

Lundin Petroleum AB found the mid-Miocene target sands to be water-bearing in the Tiga Papan-5 well on Blocks SB307 and SB308 offshore Sabah, Malaysia.

China National Offshore Oil Corp. will participate with Shell Gabon in two exploratory blocks offshore Gabon.

China National Offshore Oil Corp. has signed production sharing contracts with Shell China Exploration & Production Co. Ltd. for the 62/02 and 62/17 blocks in the Yinggehai basin south and west of Hainan Island.

Modiin Energy LP has signed a detailed drilling contract with Noble International Ltd. under which the Homer Ferrington semisubmersible will spud an exploratory well on the Gabriella license offshore Israel before June 30, 2013.

Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp., Toronto, will operate and acquire a 40% participating interest in the Portofino heavy oil exploration block in the Caguan-Putumayo basin of southern Colombia.

Production capacity of Marathon gas-condensate field in Atchafalaya Bay offshore Louisiana has risen to 50-60 MMcfd with completion of a new pipeline, said Petsec Energy Ltd., Sydney.

Exoma Energy Ltd. has completed the Sancho-1 exploratory well on ATP 999P in central Queensland, Australia, after an operating delay due to wet weather.