U.S. independent producer Murphy Oil has achieved appraisal success in its Hai Su Vang discovery in Vietnam’s offshore Cuu Long Basin, a discovery that positions it as the largest oil field find in Southeast Asia of the last two decades.
Murphy Oil said its subsidiary successfully drilled the Hai Su Vang-2X appraisal well in the Cuu Long Basin.
The HSV-2X well encountered 429 feet of net oil pay across the same two reservoirs, including 332 feet of net oil pay in the deeper primary reservoir and 97 feet of net oil pay in the shallow reservoir.
Murphy has revised its recoverable reserves estimate toward the high end of the 170-430 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMBOE) and the high end of the new range now exceeds 430 MMBOE.
“This is a pivotal moment for our Vietnam business,” according to Eric Hambly, CEO of Murphy Oil.
“The success of HSV-2X not only reinforces the commerciality of the Hai Su Vang field but also sets the stage for a robust development program.”
Energy intelligence group Wood Mackenzie estimates Murphy’s Hai Su Vang to be the third largest oil discovery in Southeast Asia since 2000, and the largest oil find of the last two decades.
Wood Mackenzie analysts believe that the discovery gives Vietnam a chance to reverse a two-decade production decline where the country’s oil output has fallen from 365,000 barrels per day in 2005 to below 120,000 b/d in 2025.
The latest oil discovery also arrives at a critical moment for the country’s ongoing offshore licensing round, since the confirmation of a discovery of this magnitude is expected to attract renewed exploration interest.
Following completion of HSV-2X operations, Murphy will continue it strategic evaluation campaign further and evaluate additional reservoir intervals with the HSV-3X evaluation well and the HSV-4X well. Both appraisal wells are included in Murphy’s capital plans.
Hai Su Vang marks Murphy’s second major oil discovery in Southeast Asia, following its 2002 Kikeh find offshore Malaysia.
The U.S. oil company has now discovered over 1.4 billion boe of net resources in its Southeast Asia portfolio since 2002.
