ExxonMobil plans to conduct exploratory operations in the Sulu Sea in the Philippines, company and government officials said June 13. The company is evaluating seismic data taken from the project area, ExxonMobil Exploration Co. vice president Stephen Greenlee said.
If the data is encouraging, the company would drill exploration wells from mid-2009, he added.
The Philippines now imports practically all of its oil requirements after some modest offshore deposits that were tapped during the 1970s energy crisis were exhausted.
A drilling program could cost over $100 million for us to explore the potential," Greenlee said. "If we're successful and we find what we hope to find, then the development of the site would (cost) several million dollars," he added.
He said "this is going to be a major milestone in the oil exploration and development efforts in the Philippines".
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2008
