PTTEP announced it has made its largest gas discovery ever, at the Lang Lebah-1RDR2, the first exploration well in Sarawak SK410B Project located offshore Sarawak, Malaysia.
Drilling of Lang Lebah-1RDR2 commenced in March targeting non-associated gas in the Middle Miocene cycle IV/V carbonate reservoir and reached a total depth of 3,810 meters. The well encountered 252 meters of net gas pay, indicating multi-TCF gas discovery, PTTEP said. The well was tested in carbonate main target reservoir with a completion-constrained (2-7/8” tubing) rate of 41.3 MMSCFD and 246 barrel of condensate per day (BCPD) through 40/64-inch choke size.
PTTEP said the discovery will require further drilling to confirm upside potential.
Sarawak SK410B Project is located in shallow water, approximately 90 kilometers offshore Sarawak, with the acreages of approximately 1,870 square kilometers. Partners in the project are PTTEP (operator), KUFPEC and PETRONAS with participating interests of 42.5%, 42.5% and 15% respectively.
Wood Mackenzie senior analyst Huong Tra Ho estimates an indicative size of 2 trillion cubic feet, making the discovery the seventh largest so far this year.
"It is in the deeper, HP/HT reservoir of the basin, and looks potentially to have relatively 'clean' gas qualities and low impurity content," Huong Tra Ho said.
"The discovery is located in the gas-rich Sarawak-Luconia-East Natuna basin, which has enjoyed an exploration success rate of 55% over the past 10 years, above the 37% global average. The Miocene carbonate play, in particular, has produced a number of high-profile finds over the years, including Pegaga, B14, Kuang North and Kasawari. But issues around gas impurities and contaminants have stymied development plans for some of the fields.
"We expect Lang Lebah to have a high chance of commercialization as feedgas into the Malaysia LNG (MLNG) complex. The plant is in urgent need of new supply as existing sources have only met 85% of its requirements in 2018. Legacy fields have experienced sand influx and water breakthroughs, while many of the remaining undeveloped discoveries require advanced CO2 and H2S processing. Gas quality will thus be crucial to determining the speed and ease of future monetization plans for Lang Lebah, which is also close to existing infrastructure.
"For PTTEP, Lang Lebah highlights the company's capability in handling technically challenging reservoirs and reinforces its business development credentials. The discovery is now the largest operated find in company history, ahead of the Zawtika field (~280 mmboe) in Myanmar.
"It also represents a big win for the Thai national oil company, which has been aggressively securing resources across Southeast Asia over the past year, particularly Malaysia. The news comes on the back of PTTEP's acquisition of Partex and Murphy Oil's Malaysia portfolio, which together make it the third largest upstream acquirer in 2019."
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