ExxonMobil finds signs of oil in Philippine site

The Philippine unit of ExxonMobil announced it discovered hydrocarbons – substances found in crude oil – more than a month after it began drilling in its first deepwater exploration well in the South Sulu Sea. The discovery of hydrocarbons – considered to occur naturally in unprocessed petroleum – has prompted the company to invest another $100 million for the drilling of a second well, an official said. Records from ExxonMobil’s Dabakan-1 well, located 65 kilometers from Mapun island in Tawi-Tawi province, “indicate reservoir sands and hydrocarbons," Ian Fischer, managing director of ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Philippines B.V. The Dabakan well “will be drilled further to a total depth of approximately 5,000 meters (16,400 feet), setting the record for the deepest well drilled in the Philippines," Fischer added at the sidelines of the Energy Consciousness Month launch. However, Fischer said that the company has yet to assess data from the area covered by its service contract (SC) 56. “Data analysis and additional studies are being conducted to evaluate the potential of the find," he said. ExxonMobil Exploration owns a 50 percent interest in SC 56 while Mitra Energy and BHP Billiton (International Exploration) Pty Ltd. Each have a 25 percent interest each. ExxonMobil already invested $100 million to establish the Dabakan-1 well where drilling began on October 11. Significant oil and gas reserves have also been discovered in Malampaya and Galoc fields, both located in Palawan. Besides being the largest publicly-traded company, Irving, Texas-headquartered ExxonMobil is the direct descendant of Standard Oil Co., which was founded by John D. Rockefeller. - RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV