Petronas makes third gas discovery in Malaysian province

Malaysia's oil giant Petronas said on Friday a subsidiary has made a gas discovery at the Hadrah-1 wildcat exploration well of Block SK411 within the shallow waters of Balingian province, about 170 km northwest off the coast of Sarawak.

The discovery by Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd (PCSB) marks the third gas discovery in the Malaysian province in 2021, after Sirung-1 and Kulintang-1 in March and May respectively.

“The gas discovery in the Hadrah-1 wildcat exploration well by PCSB further proves the promising prospects in the underexplored Cycle I, II & III plays within the Balingian province,” Emeliana Rice-Oxley, Petronas Vice President of Exploration, Upstream, said in a statement.

“The excellent quality of reservoirs encountered augurs the remaining potential in the surrounding areas, with PCSB well positioned to pursue the untapped similar plays in Blocks SK411 and SK306. We look forward to delivering more natural gas – the cleanest fossil fuel – safely and reliably to the market,” she added.

The company said they drilled Hadrah-1 to a total depth of 1,850 metres in November 2021 and encountered gas within an approximately 200-metre thick sequence of high-quality sandstone and carbonate reservoirs.

The company has previously discovered oil and gas within the same play at the D18 field in 2019.