Rick Wilkinson
OGJ Correspondent
MELBOURNE, Mar. 31 -- Apache Energy Australia, Perth, has farmed in to offshore Gippsland basin permit Vic/P45 held by Moby Oil & Gas Ltd. and Exoil Ltd., both of Melbourne.
The permit lies southeast of ExxonMobil Corp.-BHP Billiton's Kingfish oil field—the largest ever found in Australia. Moby and Exoil have delineated three new leads in Vic/P45, which they have named Errol, Neptune, and Trident.
Apache will earn 66.67% interest in the block by meeting 100% of the costs of the first two wells, although it has an option to withdraw from the second well. In that case Apache would return the whole 66.67% to Moby and Exoil.
If a discovery is made in the first well, Apache may still opt out of the second but have the right to retain its 66.67% in the discovery location. It will still have to reconvey its interest in the remainder of the permit.
The farmin deal also makes Apache operator. Moby and Exoil will retain 16.67% each.
This is the second move by Apache into the Gippsland offshore area. Two years ago the company farmed in to nearby acreage held by Nexus Energy Ltd., Melbourne.
However, Apache's major presence in the country is still in the Carnarvon basin of Western Australia, where it operates the Harriet group of oil and gas fields and the production facilities on nearby Varanus Island.
