Soco International is selling its Thai upstream assets to fellow UK independent Salamander Energy as it looks to bankroll its growing expansion in Vietnam.
Salamander will pay $105mn to buy the 40pc of the B8/38 licence in the Gulf of Thailand that it does not already own. It is already the operator of B8/38 that contains the 8,500 b/d Bualuang oil field. Soco will also receive a $1mn contingent cash payment if 1mn bl is produced from any new discovery in the licence area that is 5km or more away from Bualuang. The deal still needs approval of both companies' shareholders.
Crude from Bualuang, which started producing in 2008, is sold to Thai state-owned oil firm PTT on a 12-month term contract that started on 1 January 2010. The field's gross proved and probable reserves are 22.5mn bl with its production licence expiring in 2025.
Soco plans to use its Thai asset sale to fund its development and exploration in nearby Vietnam. It has a 25pc stake in block 9-2 and a 28.5pc share of block 16-1, which are both offshore projects in the Cuu Long basin in the southeast of the country.
The Te Giac Trang field in block 16-1, operated by the Hoang Long consortium that also features state-owned oil firms PetroVietnam and Thailand's PTTEP, has a projected output of 50,000 b/d by mid-2011. The Ca Ngu Vang field in block 9-2 started production in 2008 with output of around 11,000 b/d of oil equivalent last year for its operator, the Hoan Vu consortium that also comprises PetroVietnam and PTTEP.
Salamander will pay $105mn to buy the 40pc of the B8/38 licence in the Gulf of Thailand that it does not already own. It is already the operator of B8/38 that contains the 8,500 b/d Bualuang oil field. Soco will also receive a $1mn contingent cash payment if 1mn bl is produced from any new discovery in the licence area that is 5km or more away from Bualuang. The deal still needs approval of both companies' shareholders.
Crude from Bualuang, which started producing in 2008, is sold to Thai state-owned oil firm PTT on a 12-month term contract that started on 1 January 2010. The field's gross proved and probable reserves are 22.5mn bl with its production licence expiring in 2025.
Soco plans to use its Thai asset sale to fund its development and exploration in nearby Vietnam. It has a 25pc stake in block 9-2 and a 28.5pc share of block 16-1, which are both offshore projects in the Cuu Long basin in the southeast of the country.
The Te Giac Trang field in block 16-1, operated by the Hoang Long consortium that also features state-owned oil firms PetroVietnam and Thailand's PTTEP, has a projected output of 50,000 b/d by mid-2011. The Ca Ngu Vang field in block 9-2 started production in 2008 with output of around 11,000 b/d of oil equivalent last year for its operator, the Hoan Vu consortium that also comprises PetroVietnam and PTTEP.
