Kikeh No. 3 holds significant oil

Murphy Oil Corp's Kikeh No. 3 well successfully appraised the previously announced Kikeh oil discovery drilled in block K, offshore Sabah Malaysia.
"The results from the Kikeh No. 3 well and the subsequent updip sidetrack are excellent and confirm the Kikeh field as a very significant oil discovery. Our preliminary estimates put recoverable reserves in the range of 400 - 700 MMbbl," said Claiborne P. Deming, Murphy Oil president and CEO. Kikeh No. 3 was drilled almost 2 mi from the Kikeh No. 2 appraisal well and almost 3 mi from the Kikeh No. 1 discovery well. Wire line electric logs and pressure measurements confirm reservoir connectivity between all three wells, he said. "As expected, we did not find any gas in the updip sidetrack and have yet to define the down-dip oil limits to this field," he added.
"Our current plans are to release the rig and prepare for a very active exploration and appraisal program on block K and the adjoining block H that should kick off before mid-year 2003. We plan to drill at least one more appraisal well at Kikeh, where we will cut full hole cores over key intervals and conduct a flow test program, all aimed at moving this field towards development sanction as soon as possible," Deming said.
The Kikeh field lies in 4,400 ft of water in the southern part of block K. Murphy, operator, has an 80% working interest in blocks K and H, which, combined, cover over six million acres. Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd holds the remaining 20%.
11/25/02